A Modern French Fairytale
by BelieveTheWarIsOver
Summary: Serena lives in a town where she is harassed by the realities of pompous jerks, university and unfulfilled fantasies. But when her roommate and best friend goes missing it's up to her do something about it. A Sailor Moon version of Beauty and the Beast
1. The Beginning

**A/N: This is my latest attempt at fanfiction. It's a Beauty and the Beast inspired story, as the summary explains. I hope everyone likes it!**

**Disclaimer-I don't own Sailor Moon or Beauty and the Beast. And, the chapter title is The Beginning by Lifehouse. I think I'm going to do this whole story with song titles as chapters. I've always wanted to try that, even if nothing but the song title is actually relevant.  
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**Chapter 1:**

"Serena, how many times are you going to read that book?" Ami asked knowingly as the blond haired girl picked a well-worn book of the shelf.

"Who knows?" Serena replied with a shrug and a wink of the eye. Her smile was as bright as the gleaming sun that cold, winter morning, a smile Ami looked forward to seeing almost everyday. The blue-haired girl had traveled with her friend from their hometown to this God forsaken tiny town for college. Neither really enjoyed being so far from home, but the cheer the blond had in abundance went a long way.

"It's so hard to believe you only used to be interested in manga, movies and your stomach before now, Serena," Ami mumbled as she shook her head in disbelief.

"I grew up, Ames, what else did you think would happen? Besides, what I read now isn't such a far cry from manga. As for the rest, I just stopped watching so many movies and gave up the video games. It's not like I have any money to pay for them now. Library books are so much cheaper, especially when I return them on time," Serena admitted, her voice laden with the truths of her life.

"Well, Serena, in honor of you growing up, why don't you keep the book? It'll save you a trip or two, maybe," Ami offered ignoring Serena's negativity.

"Really?" Serena asked hopefully, her blue eyes wide. She knew Ami was proud of her changes, but this was too much! Her friend treated the books in the library like her children and now she was giving on away?

"Yes really," Ami conceded easily. "It's not like many people take this book out anyways. It's only you and a few others that come here to read for entertainment."

"Thank you so much!" Serena squealed, not caring for the reasons as she hurried forward and gave Ami a big hug, eliciting a cheerful laugh from her friend.

"Anything to see that smile," Ami encouraged warmly. It was a compliment, Serena knew that, but she also knew it was given because no one else would ever say such a thing. It was well known she was the town outcast. All the girls in her small university thought she was odd, an outsider, and the townspeople found it strange that such a beautiful girl had her nose buried in a book all the time. Not to mention Diamond, who ruthlessly pursued her. His compliments were always so backwards, they were worse than nothing at all.

"Thank you again, but I must get going. Molly has definitely made a mess of the kitchen in an attempt to make dinner by now," Serena informed. As much as the blond loved her housemate and very best friend, she had to admit that she wasn't the brightest and Ami knew it as well. Molly had followed her two college bound friends when they moved, especially since the redhead's business was a traveling one. Jewelry making could be successful anywhere.

"Wish her luck with her business for me," Ami insisted.

"I will if you send my best to Greg!" Serena called back, mentioning her friend's boyfriend as an afterthought as she waved goodbye before rushing out of the store without waiting for a response.

The markets were busy, just as they always were at that time of day. People were running errands, visiting friends, simply strolling or window-shopping, something Serena used to enjoy doing. That was before Diamond started harassing her. It really was rather difficult for her to enjoy herself when he was chasing her, especially when with Molly, who wasn't as immune to his charms as she was.

"Ah! Serena!" a very familiar voice called pompously, causing Serena to wince. If only his ego would allow him to leave her alone.

"Hello Diamond, Sapphire," Serena greeted cordially as she turned to find the brothers standing side-by-side, as usual. Poor Sapphire, she thought. He was always the lackey.

"Serena, would you accompany on a walk around the lake this evening?" Diamond asked, sounding as polite as ever. If Serena didn't know any better she would fall for the stuck up pig, just as most the girls at her university had. It was ridiculous how one man, a particularly volatile man, had managed to accumulate such a following. These girls even drooled after him all around town and glared at her as she turned down his advances. If only they could understand that he was a spoiled, self-centered, greedy, pompous asshole and not some sort of town hero.

"No, thank you," Serena replied, her voice just as polite as she tried to pass him only to be stopped. She hadn't expected any less.

"Surely you would allow me to take you out, maybe at a later date?" he pressed. Serena had to squash her impatience and rage. He was so infuriating, but upsetting him would do no good. He was still one of the up and coming leaders of the community. He, unlike her, was a born and raised member of this town. She was just a visitor, there to get a degree from one of the most prestigious universities in the region.

"I don't think so," Serena blurted out before biting down on her lower lip to keep everything else she wanted to say inside.

Quickly, before anyone could stop her, Serena ducked around Diamond and Sapphire. She tucked her book under her arms, made sure her backpack was settled properly on her shoulders and then took off at a run, not wanting to give Diamond a chance to chase after her.

"Serena!" Molly called as the blond entered the house, the door slamming behind her.

"Hey Moll, sorry I'm late. I got caught up talking to Ami," Serena gasped as she dropped the book on the front table and stripped out of her winter gear.

"It's okay. I just finished dinner. I think it's edible this time," Molly said in excitement as Serena rubbed her hands against her legging-clad thighs in an attempt to warm them. She couldn't imagine why the university thought a mini skirt was appropriate for the uniform, but there wasn't much she could do even with the help of the skin-tight pants she wore underneath.

"You know I'll eat it regardless, Molly," Serena replied. She might have become a bookworm over time, but she still had her bottomless stomach.

"I don't know why Ami doesn't just move in with us," Molly commented as the pair settled down around the small kitchen table.

"Well, there's not much room here and she loves living above that library she works in. Besides, she's much closer to school and Greg this way," Serena informed, even though this topic had been discussed many a time.

"I know, I know, it's just so silly," Molly mumbled as she dug into her dinner.

"Oh Molly, Ami still loves us. She's just focused. It's better this way. We see her all the time, anyways," Serena pointed out. "And she sends her best."

"She always does," Molly sighed with a small smile. "I should visit her myself."

"Yes, you should, but first you need to finish off your line and get yourself to that fair! What time do you leave tomorrow?" Serena asked curiously.

"Midday should get me there in time for dinner and the first meeting," Molly replied tiredly. Serena knew her friend wasn't looking forward to the hours of work she had to do that night in order to finish everything off for the fair.

"You should sleep in. I'll wake up early, make breakfast and fix you something to eat on the road," Serena informed, her tone leaving no room for argument.

"If you insist, Rena, but only if you let me wash the dishes tonight," Molly replied, grateful for her roommate, as always. Serena smile in return, hearing the thanks her voice.

"Of course, Molly. I did to go to the library today, so I have a book to read," Serena said cheerfully.

"I'm not surprised," Molly snorted. "You always seem to come home with a book these days."

"Well, it's not my fault I have to imagine my prince charming because all of the men in this town are lacking," Serena retorted.

"Diamond isn't that bad." Diamond really was the one thing the girls could never agree on. The fact saddened Serena, but there wasn't much she could do. Neither girl was going to change their stance anytime soon. Their stubborn natures were something they had always had in common.

"Well regardless, you need to keep an eye out for a set of good looking guys for us while you're away. We need fresh prospects!" Serena insisted as she held her breath, praying Molly would forget about Diamond and the fight that would ensue if she didn't.

"You're right, Serena. There's sure to be plenty of cute ones at the fair," Molly nodded, newly determined. Serena let out the breath she had been holding in as he radiant smile look its place. She felt bad manipulating her closest friend, but sometimes she felt she had no other choice.

"Well, you know the ones I like," Serena giggled as the girls began to gossip over dinner, their time together light and cheerful once more, just as it always was when Diamond was not being discussed. If only he wasn't around to ruin things, the blond girl cursed as her companion detailed her perfect man for the millionth and most likely not the last time in their friendship.

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**A/N: Okay, I'm sure the story line's been done before, but I was watching Beauty and the Beast last night and I had to. Please forgive me.**

**So please review and let me know what you think!**

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby  
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	2. Hum Hallelujah

**Disclaimer-Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast are not mine.**** The song for the chapter title is**** Hum Hallelujah by Fall Out Boy.

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**Chapter 2:**

"Oh Serena, I can't believe you went to all this trouble," Molly said in disbelief as she took the picnic basket from her friend. It was decorated with pink bunnies and hearts that very much represented the fact that at least part of Serena's innocent heart had weathered the storm of maturity.

"Don't worry about it, Molly. It was fun," Serena assured as she ushered her friend to the old, beaten up VW Bug Molly had inherited from her grandmother.

"You'll be okay while I'm gone, yes?" Molly asked after setting the picnic basket on the passenger seat of the car. "You'll remember to eat? Promise won't get lost in those books of yours."

"That only happened once, Moll," Serena insisted. No, Molly wasn't the brightest crayon in the box, but she was still the reminder to Serena's forgetful ways.

"Just don't forget, alright?" she pressed. "I've left the contact numbers on the fridge. Don't hesitate to call me if you need me."

"The same goes for you, Molly. I copied those directions you wrote out and the copy is in my purse, just in case," Serena reminded.

"That only happened once!" Molly exclaimed, echoing her friend's previous sentiment, causing Serena to laugh.

"Okay, since we've both got everything covered, you should get going," Serena said, her smile bright as Molly got into the drivers seat.

"Bye Serena," Molly called as she started up the engine.

"I'll see you soon, Molly," she replied as she stepped away from the car and watched her friend turn out of the driveway, onto the road leading out of town.

Just as Molly turned out of sight, Serena's stomach let out a loud grumble. "Of course," she sighed. Perhaps it was feeding time.

Serena shivered as she walked back inside the house. She had only worn a sweater to see her friend off, but it was now time to layer up. Winter had officially set in a few weeks earlier and, as far as the blond could tell, it was going to be a long wait before spring.

"It's too freaking cold," she complained to no one as she bundled up, pulling the zipper on her coat as high as it would go over her scarf and sweatshirt. Once her gloves were on and her hat was covering all the necessary parts, she stepped out of the house to brave the elements, her purse hanging off her hip, the strap draped securely across her chest.

"I don't know why I don't just beg my parents for a car. It doesn't have to be anything special. It just has to move," Serena continued to complain as she hopped on her bike and made her way down to the local arcade that doubled as a café. It wasn't much, but she enjoyed it when Diamond wasn't around to ruin it.

When she arrived, all of the regulars were sitting in their regular booths. Christmas vacation had started only a few days prior and due to the surplus of vacation days she had at work, Serena decided to take off a couple of days. Vacation days didn't roll over and the petite blond could use the time off.

"What can I get you? The usual?" Andrew asked. Serena smiled at the man behind the counter. He hadn't been working at the arcade long and he didn't take on too many hours, but they had struck up a polite friendship on the day they first met.

"Yes please," Serena cheered as the mild-mannered man winked in response and turned to fill her order.

"How are you doing?" Andrew called over his shoulder as he flipped Serena's burger with surprising grace and ease.

"I'm good, how are you?" Serena said, hoping her voice was loud enough to be heard.

"I'm okay, I guess. Really busy though," he replied. "How's your roommate?"

"Molly? She's really good. She's off at a fair for her jewelry. I think her line's really going to take off. She's worked so hard, it just has to," Serena said, enthusiasm present in abundance in her voice.

"And your family?" Andrew asked as he brought over Serena's triple chocolate milkshake.

"Brilliant. Sammy's doing well in school and my dad got a Christmas bonus," Serena said joyfully as she lifted her straw and took a long sip of her milkshake.

"Well that sounds like a Merry Christmas, Serena," Andrew replied as he turned back to the grill.

"Yes, I suppose it does." She paused thoughtfully as she drank a little more of her shake. "How's your family? Are you doing anything with them for the holidays?"

"My family and I don't really talk. I live with my best friend just outside of town. We exchange a small gifts every year, but he's not a fan of the holidays." It was a nice enough idea, but Serena couldn't help but wonder about Andrew's family and this friend of his.

"That's a shame," Serena said softly. Her family had never been able to spend much on the holidays, but what they lacked in money, they more than made up for with holiday cheer.

"Are you going home for the holidays?" he asked as he leaned against the counter, his hair flopping down over his eyes.

"Nah, can't afford the flight and I don't have a car. I can't very well bike a 20 hour car ride," she mumbled before biting into a french fry.

"Will Molly be here before Christmas?" Andrew pressed, his curiosity peaking.

"I don't think so. The fair is closer to home than it is to here, so she's just going to spend it with her family and mine, probably," Serene sighed. "My friend Ami and I were supposed to do something, but she's going with her boyfriend to meet his parents instead, so it's just me this year."

"I wish I could offer you somewhere to go for Christmas," Andrew replied sincerely.

"Oh don't worry about me. I'll just decorate the small tree Molly picked up the other day and make something simple for dinner. All I really want to do is curl up with my favorite book and take some time to myself. It'll be fine," Serena shrugged.

"You're a strange one, Serena." The wry grin on his face and glint in his eyes told her that he only meant the best and she could appreciate that.

"You don't need to tell me," she shot back as a group of hungry looking teenagers entered the arcade. Andrew tipped his head before walking away to see to the incoming crowd, allowing Serena to satiate her appetite in silence.

Once she was done, Serena dropped what she owed the still-busy Andrew on the table top with a nice holiday tip, if she did say so herself, and got up to retrieve her bike. She had decided to stop by the library and the grocery store before going home so that perhaps she wouldn't have to resurface in town until all the Christmas hype had died down a bit. The New Years excitement was easier to deal with, seeing as though it was much less family-oriented. Well, that and Ami, if not Molly as well, would definitely be home by then.

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After bidding Ami a Merry Christmas and insisting she would be okay for what seemed like the hundredth time that visit, Serena quickly backed out of the store, shoved the book she had just checked out into the grocery-filled basket on the back of her bike and climbed back onto it, near desperate to be back in the warmth of her house.

Thankfully, this trip into town had been one without an interaction with Diamond. Ami, however, had nagged a bit, taking over for the irritating fair-haired man. Serena was a pro at brushing off Molly's swooning, but she couldn't seem to divert her shy friend's concerns.

"_I don't know why you don't give him a chance," Ami sighed tiredly as she put the last of the returned books back on the proper shelves._

"_Because he's an insufferable jerk who isn't fit to date a cow, forget about me," Serena insisted stubbornly._

"_He seems to have your best interests at heart, Serena," she pressed on. Serena could tell Ami didn't want to start a fight and that she just wanted the best for her friend, but the two girls obviously differed on what was best._

"_It doesn't matter, Ami!" Serena insisted. "He could never make me happy, never in a million years."_

"_I just don't want to see you alone forever." And that was the crux of the matter. Even though Ami was very bright girl, she also knew the importance of finding a significant other. Even more so, she knew how important it was to Serena._

"_I won't be," Serena said, hoping it was true. "I'm still young and I have lots of men to meet before I settle down. Besides, I think it'd be better to be alone than to be with someone you don't truly love. Could you imagine being with Greg if you didn't love him? If you didn't feel attracted to him?"_

"_No," Ami mumbled softly, a blush spreading across her cheeks at the mention of the love and attraction she felt towards her boyfriend._

"_I didn't think so." Something told Serena that this was the only time she would ever beat her friend in a game of logic. "So just let me do it my way. I'll be okay, Ami. I know you worry, but you don't have to. I can take care of myself."_

"_I know you can, Serena, but please, don't let yourself grow old alone. I'd worry for you more than I do now if that were to happen," Ami begged._

"_I won't, Ami. You know my sharp eyes on always on the lookout for Prince Charming. He's out there, I know he is, and I'll find him," Serena replied, trying to believe in the confidence she spoke with._

"_Good," Ami replied with a sigh. Serena allowed a small smile to creep onto her face. The topic of Diamond would be dropped for at least a little while and that was enough to take a load of the petite girl's shoulders. "Now, let's find you a new book."_

"_Halleluja!" Serena sang joyfully as the Christmas excitement took over, despite the complete lack of religion in her life._

"Well, I escaped that time. Thank God for small miracles," Serena mumbled before gritting her teeth and propelling her bike up the slightly damp streets, back to her house.

Once she had arrived, she quickly brought everything in as to avoid having to be outside in the dark. Serena hated the dark almost as much as she hated thunderstorms and she avoided it as much as possible. She even kept a flashlight and extra batteries in her purse, just in case.

It was only when she had finished putting away the last of the groceries and was deciding what to have for dinner that her phone started ringing from the confines of her purse.

Serena ran to the front hall, nearly tripping over the carpet in the front hall as she went, to retrieve the buzzing device. Once it was located, the caller ID informed her that it was Molly calling.

"She probably just got to the fair," Serena mused as she picked up the call.

"Rena!" Molly gasped, causing a chill to run up Serena's spine. This didn't sound good. "Serena, oh thank God."

"Molly, what happened?" Serena asked frantically.

"I don't know," Molly whispered, making it so Serena could barely hear her. The amount of static the phone was emitting was enough to make anyone think the call would drop at any second. "I guess I made a wrong turn and then my car ran out of gas and I stopped to get help but this guy found me and flipped out on me for trespassing. I'm sitting in his living room and he won't let me leave!"

Somehow Serena heard and understood all of this. "Did he call the police?" Oh how she hoped her friend would respond in the negative. The last thing they needed was trouble with the law.

"No, he hasn't, but I think he might," Molly replied fearfully.

"All right Moll, where did you make the wrong turn? I'll come and get you," Serena sighed. The book she had brought home that afternoon was a new one. The spine hadn't even been cracked yet.

"Oh thank you Serena!" Molly exclaimed before detailing where she thought she made her mistake.

"I'll see you soon," Serena assured.

"Yes, I'll see you soon," the redheaded replied, relief flooding her voice. "Oh! I need to go, he's coming back and I don't want to upset him. He gets real angry, real fast." And with that, the line went dead.

Serena shook her head at her friend's folly. This would happen to Molly, she thought as she quickly pulled on all of her layers once more and grabbed her purse before heading to the garage to retrieve the spare can of gasoline they kept there, just in case.

After making sure the canister was securely placed on the bike and the flashlight she had attached to her bike as a headlight was turned on, Serena hopped on and started pedaling in the direction her friend had drove off in earlier that day. According to Molly, she hadn't gotten far before her wrong turn, which had successfully gotten her lost. Apparently, she had driven around in circles for quite sometime, trying to put herself back on the right track and had quickly run out of gas.

"Aha!" Serena gasped victoriously as she spotted Molly's car ahead of her. She was getting sick of turning down roads that would only double back to a road she had seen previously.

Serena quickly slipped off her bike and propped it up against the car before taking the path that had been described to her towards the house where her friend waited for her. She only hoped that she would be able to sweet talk their way out of this mess, especially since Molly was of the impression that this guy was not at all mild mannered.

"Jeeze," Serena said, her tone low and impressed as she took in the sight of the house in front of her. It was huge! She had never seen anything like it and was sure she would never see anything like it ever again.

Once she was over her shock, Serena quickly made her way up the path, thankful that the slightly strenuous bike ride had kept her warm on the way there. On top of everything else, she also hated being cold.

After pressing the small doorbell that was next to the very large front door, Serena stood perfectly still, listening to the sound of the bell chime inside the house, waiting for a response. It wasn't long before she received one.

"So you're the lass Miss Molly keeps babbling on about. Come in, come in, Master Darien has worked himself into quite the temper waiting for you," a tall, dark haired woman insisted.

"What?" Serena asked in disbelief as the strange woman pulled her inside the house.

"It'd be best to just follow me, dear, yes, just follow me," the woman mumbled under her breath, just loud enough for Serena to hear. With wide eyes, she did just that. What other choice did she have?

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**A/N: Run away... that's likely... creepers.**

**Thanks for all the reviews guys! Keep them coming please! I love feedback.**

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby**


	3. Hopeless

**Disclaimer-Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is Hopeless by KT Tunstall.

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**Chapter 3:**

Darien walked through the greenhouse with content flooding his veins. It was his favorite pastime during the winter due to the fact that his beloved long-stemmed roses couldn't bloom outside in the cold. He was just checking on the youngest of the budding winter flowers when he caught a flash of red out of the corner of his eye. It wasn't the red of his flowers, that's for sure, and no one on his staff had red hair.

"What the hell?" Darien growled angrily as he quickly exited the greenhouse to find out who had stumbled onto his property.

It didn't take long for him to locate the intruder. She looked very lost, small and scared, but that meant nothing to him. She was on his property, the very last place he wanted her to be for a variety of reasons.

"What the hell are you doing on my property?" Darien boomed, his voice deep, intimidating and rough.

"I-I'm sorry," the girl stuttered, her brown eyes wide with fear. "I g-got l-l-lost and now I'm st-stuck."

God, she was pathetic, Darien thought as she shied away from him. It was ridiculous how some people acted these days.

"You're on my property," he spat out, not satisfied with the answer he had received.

"I'm s-so sorry!" she exclaimed as tears welled up in her eyes. And now she was crying? Too bad she'd stumbled upon a man who was far from affected by tears.

"Enough!" Darien shouted, his temper finally getting the best of him. "Follow me." He didn't wait for her response before making his way to the house. He could just barely hear the girl trying to keep up with him, her feet hitting the ground hard as she went.

"Luna!" Darien yelled as he swung open the front door with excessive force.

"Yes Master Darien?" Luna asked as she bustled into the room, Diana following close behind as usual.

"Take this intruder into the lounge," Darien commanded as he walked past the employee, up the stairs and to his private section of the manor.

When Darien finally made it upstairs, he dropped down on his favorite, well-worn leather sofa and let out another loud yell that anyone could easily confuse with the roar of a lion. More than anything, he hated when people intruded on his life. He was a temperamental introvert and had been since the day his parents had left the house one morning and never came back. The only people he would ever tolerate were the ones who had been there since the start.

"Why can't they just leave me alone?" Darien shouted as he got to his feet and threw the throw pillow that was clenched in his hand at the wall. Unfortunately, he missed, for not the first time, and hit a lamp, making yet another porcelain mess for Mina to clean up. He sighed, his anger dissipating. He always felt bad, giving the tall, charismatic blond more work. She was always there for him, just like the rest of his staff, and he hated to make any of their lives excessively difficult.

"Darien?" a muffled voice called through the door of his study. "Darien can we come in?"

"Yes," he grumbled, knowing exactly who had come to talk to him and that he couldn't keep them out even if he tried.

"Oh Darien," Mina sighed as she walked into the room only to discover the mess he had made.

"Darien, I don't understand how many times you have to be told to control your temper!" Raye exclaimed in annoyance. "You nearly scare that girl to death and then you come here and make a mess for Mina to clean up. And it's not like this is the first time you've done this. You've been like this for ages. Why can't you just hold back on the anger?"

"Oh Raye, please relax," Mina requested as she bent down to sweep up the shards of the broken lamp.

"No! I can't stand to watch him make a mess of his life anymore! It's a downward spiral and it's not going to end well," Raye insisted as she sat down on Darien's right.

"You always know how to make me regret my entire life, Raye. Thanks for that," Darien mumbled.

"Raye!" Mina exclaimed. "Enough with the melodrama. So Darien doesn't have a good handle on his temper. You're not good at thinking about what you say before you say it and I'm entirely too cheerful and optimistic for being a maid in a house I grew up in."

"Mina!" Raye shrieked before turning her tirade onto the blond who was tactfully ignoring her as she returned to her task of cleaning up Darien's mess.

"Raye, Mina, please, enough," Darien begged as he dropped his throbbing head into his hand. Too much had happened in the last half hour for him to have the energy to deal with any of it, especially with the nightmares he'd been having.

"What's wrong Darien?" Mina asked as she tossed the last of the debris into the garbage and sat down on Darien's left.

"Nothing," Darien said as he stood up and shook off the two girls. Well, that wasn't exactly true, but he wasn't about to admit it.

"Darien?" Raye asked softly, her verbal abuse aside for the moment due to the concern for her friend.

"Leave it," he insisted he walked out of the room, his strides longer than either girls', causing them to fall behind as he made his way downstairs to deal with the trespasser.

The redhead was just closing her cell phone as he walked back into the room. "What were you doing on my property?" he asked, trying to keep his voice calm as he spoke.

"M-my car ran out of g-gas," she said, tripping over her words as she dropped her head.

Darien shoved his hands into his pockets and studied the girl carefully. She had told the same story when he first found her and she didn't seem to be lying.

"I-I'm sorry," she whispered just loud enough for him to hear.

"Luna," Darien called, his voice only raised so it would carry into the next room.

"Master Darien?" Luna responded kindly as she poked her head into the room.

"Did you offer our intruder something to drink?" Darien asked.

"Yes sir, she declined," Luna replied.

"Offer her something again," Darien muttered as he made his way to the kitchen.

"Uncle Darien!" Diana exclaimed as she jumped off the counter and ran over to the man her mother called Master.

"Hey Diana," Darien replied as he lifted the small girl into his arms, a small, rare smile gracing his features.

"Thank God for that little girl," Lita said as she turned from the stove to greet her employer. "If not for her, I would worry your heart was completely frozen over."

"Lita," Darien replied sharply as he smile turned into a frown.

"No frowning, no frowning!" Diana insisted as she reached up and used her small fingers to push the edges of Darien's lips upwards, causing Lita to laugh.

"Diana, don't harass Master Darien," Artemis insisted as he walked into the room.

"But Daddy, Uncle Darien owes me a piggyback ride," Diana whined as she bounced up and down in Darien's arms.

"Diana," Artemis replied expectantly.

"Artemis, it's okay. I do owe her a piggyback ride," Darien assured as he swung Diana over his shoulders and carried her over to the cookie jar Lita had refilled earlier that morning.

"Can I have one, Daddy?" Diana asked, twisting her body so that her father would be able to see the pleading pout on her face.

"Just one," Artemis relented as Darien reached into the jar and pulled out two cookies, one for him and one for Diana.

"Yum!" Diana cheered. "Thank you Daddy, thank you Aunt Lita, thank you Uncle Darien."

"Anytime, munchkin," Lita replied for all three of them before turning back to the stove.

"Daddy, can me and Uncle Darien go play outside?" Diana asked sweetly.

"Whoa there, baby girl, Uncle Darien's busy," Darien informed.

"With that girl in the other room?" Diana asked curiously. "She seems really nice. Why is she so sad?"

"Because Uncle Darien's a frigid bastard," Lita mumbled under her breath so Diana wouldn't be able to hear.

"Now, now Lita," Artemis reprimanded as he pried Diana off Darien's back.

"What did Aunt Lita say?" Diana asked as she took in Lita, Darien and Artemis's expressions.

"Nothing, sweetheart," Artemis assured as he carried the small girl out of the kitchen.

"Daddy, what did Aunt Lita say?" Diana asked again as Artemis walked out of hearing range.

"I've been getting that a lot today," Darien mumbled as he sat down on one of the old, wooden stools that inhabited the kitchen.

"It's only because we care about you," Lita told him honestly as she turned away from the stove and knelt down in front of Darien. "We don't want to see you alone forever. You're never going to meet someone if you don't get control of yourself and get out of this house."

"Lita-" Darien began only to be cut off.

"No, Darien, enough with the excuses. I know it's hard for you to leave this place, but it's okay. Nothing bad is going to happen," Lita said as she set a hand on her friend's knee.

"I know," Darien said softly before pulling away from Lita and getting to his feet. "I just can't change it," he added as he walked to the other side of the kitchen.

"We can help you, you know," Lita pressed on as she tried to approach him again.

"It's a waste, Lita. Don't worry about me." And once again he was brushing off one of his all-too-eager friends in their attempt to make him less of a bitter jackass.

"Darien," Lita said. He hated hearing her disappointment but she had lofty ideas, ones that he couldn't bring himself to live up to.

"I'm sorry, Lita," Darien replied sincerely before walking back into the lounge to deal with the situation at hand.

"Master Darien, Miss Molly's friend is here," Luna informed as she passed by him on her way to the kitchen.

"Miss Molly? Her friend?" Darien asked incredulously, but Luna was already gone. "Would someone please tell me what's going on here?" But he didn't wait for an answer, he just made his way back into the lounge to find the same redhead who had caused him so much unhappiness in the arms of a girl with impossibly long blond hair that was tied up in two pigtails on the top of her head.

"Who are you?" Darien barked, his patience running thin yet again in front of these strangers.

"I'm Serena Tsukino and this is my friend Molly Baker," the blond said hesitantly as she pulled away from the redhead and approached him, her hand outstretched.

"Darien Shields," he replied hesitantly as he reached forward to grip her hand firmly for a few brief seconds before pulling back as if burnt.

"I'm sorry my friend's caused you any trouble. If there's anything I can do to make up for the inconvenience, please let me know, but if not, we should get going. It's starting to snow," Serena explained, her voice kind and apologetic.

Darien frowned as he studied the girl. Everything about Serena exuded kindness and innocence, characteristics that he didn't encounter often unless he counted Diana, but she was five. There was something about he blond that he found to be different than anything he had ever seen before. Maybe it was her wide blue eyes, her lithe frame or her open nature, but it unnerved him. It intrigued him. It made him want to spend more time with her, even though he knew she was going to walk out the door within the next five minutes and he was never going to see her again.

* * *

**A/N: Don't go Serena! Oh wait... she's not going anywhere... muhahaha!**

**Enough of my insanity. Thanks for all the reviews, they really make my day! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. If you didn't (or even if you did), drop me a review and tell me about it.**

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby  
**


	4. Stormy Weather

**Disclaimer-****Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is Stormy Weather by The Kooks.

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**Chapter 4:**

"There's a storm brewing, so we really must be going if there's nothing we can do to correct the situation at hand," Serena insisted. God, this guy was gorgeous. Even when he frowned at her, all she wanted to do was drool all over him. But Molly was not one to lie to Serena, unless she was blinded by charm of course. If her redheaded friend said that this guy was a first class jerk, she had to hate him, no matter how good looking he was.

"Serena, why don't I go fill the car with the gas you brought while you talk things out with Mr. Shields?" Molly suggested, her voice small and fearful as she tugged at her friend's arm to get her attention.

Serena was surprised. She had never, ever heard her friend speak like that. It only came to serve as further proof that she would just have to get over her basic instincts to jump this guy.

"May she?" Serena asked politely as she turned to look at the tall, dark haired man, her cerulean eyes wide as she implored him to take pity on them.

"She can go," Darien replied, his voice rumbling deep in his chest as he spoke.

Damn him to hell, Serena though as her heart began to beat just a little bit faster. She needed to remember he was a temperamental asshole. She needed to remember how badly he had scared her best friend. She needed to remember she couldn't get emotionally invested. Either that or he needed him to magically become a nice guy. But until then, she would have to calm down.

"I'll call you from the car," Molly squeaked out as she jumped up from her seat and practically ran out of the house.

"So, is there anything I can do to make up for the inconvenience my friend has posed upon you today?" Serena asked, rephrasing her original question. The sooner they got this over with, the sooner she would be able to escape the presence of this supposedly volatile man that she was so attracted to for no sensible reason.

"No," he mumbled as he dropped his head with a sigh. Serena furrowed her brow. After minutes of silence, he had come up with nothing? And why did he sound so dejected? Wasn't he supposed to be the big bad wolf or something like that?

"A-Are you okay?" Serena asked before she could help herself. Fuck me, she thought. Why can't I control this? The fascination with this Darien Shields was morphing from a curious incident to an irritating dilemma.

"Yes," he replied curtly, his tone sharp and final. "You best leave. Now."

There it was. It was what Molly had warned her about. Serena had to work hard to keep her eyes from rolling. Men and their egos made life so much more difficult than it needed to be. Of course, who was she to talk? She had butted into his life. Although, it wasn't as if she would ever let him know that she was wrong and he was right.

"Leave? I don't think that's a good idea for anyone. I hardly made it inside without getting blown away," a voice stated as a familiar someone walked into the lounge.

"Andrew?" Serena exclaimed in surprise.

"Serena? What are you doing here?" Andrew questioned as he turned to shoot Darien a curious look. "Darien, why is Serena here?"

"You know her?" Darien asked with a raised eyebrow, his confusion clear to everyone in the room.

"Serena comes into the arcade I work at in town at least three times a week, usually during lunch. Her usual is a veggie burger, fries and a milkshake, but on a bad day it's that plus a large sundae to top it off," Andrew replied as he shot Serena a teasing wink, causing her to blush. Of course he would detail her dietary secrets to a complete stranger who she happened to be inexplicably drawn to.

"But wait, what are you doing here?" Andrew continued, his original question still unanswered.

"My friend ran out of gas down the road and she came over here to find some help. Unfortunately, she stumbled onto Mr. Shields's property. Thankful, it was decided that the police didn't need to get involved and I rode over on my bike to bring gas so Molly and I could drive home," Serena explained, trying to sound as impartial as possible.

"Oh Darien," Andrew sighed as he rolled his eyes at his friend and pushed back the wet hair that was plastered against his forehead. "I don't know why you had to make Serena bike all the way out here, we could have just given her friend enough fuel to get back into the town."

"She was trespassing!" Darien protested, his temper visibly flaring as he clenched his fists at his side and gritted his teeth.

"Darien, please relax," Andrew said as he walked over to his friend and set a comforting hand on his shoulder. "It's okay, just take a deep breath and try not to lose it."

Serena watched the pair in awe as Darien did as Andrew told him and took three long, deep breaths. In the process, the taller man dropped his shoulders and relaxed his jaw.

"Wait, Andrew, what are you doing here?" Serena spluttered, her disbelief present in her voice even though neither man seemed to notice.

"I live here. Darien's the best friend I told you about," Andrew replied, his response more then just a surprise to Serena. How is it that this docile, kind, fair-haired man's best friend is this guy who was quickly, and scarily, living up to the expectations Molly had set for him?

"Oh, wow, I didn't know," Serena said, saying the first and only thing that came to mind.

"But you really should get going before you get stuck here because of the rain," Andrew insisted just as a loud crack or thunder cut through the silence followed by a bright flash of lightning that filled the room, blinding everyone for a few brief seconds. Of course, once the light subsided, Serena, unable to contain her fears, let out a loud yelp of fear and clutched her purse tightly to her chest.

"Okay, time to go," Serena said, her words rushed and pushed together in such a way that she barely made any sense, even to herself.

"Do you want me to walk you out?" Andrew asked, his voice laced with concern.

"No, it's fine," Serena mumbled as she shook her head, all the while wondering why Darien was so silent. Well, she could think of a bunch of reasons why, but she would have liked it if he said something. Preferable something nice, even though she knew that was just as unlikely as him saying anything at all. "It was nice to meet you, Mr. Shields. Andrew, I'll see you around."

"Bye Serena," Andrew replied cheerfully as Serena hurried to the door. She was just reaching for the doorknob when a hand reached out and grabbed her shoulder to stop her.

"Remind your friend to be more careful next time," Darien said, a harsh tone attached to his voice.

"Okay," Serena whispered as she pulled open the door and stepped outside only to be assaulted by the pelting rain and aggressive winds that accompanied the dreaded thunder and lightning. She was about to take another step forward when a particularly strong gust pushed her backwards into Darien, knocking both of them off of their feet and back into the house.

"Fuck," Darien groaned as Serena scrambled to her feet, mortified at having been pushed back by something as seemingly innocent as a thunderstorm.

"I'm so sorry, I don't know what happened," Serena said, stumbling over her words as another burst of air came through the open door, sweeping leaves into the house and causing her hair to fan out around her.

"The door! Close it!" Darien shouted over the storm as he pushed himself up onto his elbows. Serena nodded and turned to wrestle the door back into place. Once it was shut, she pressed her back up against it and let out a sigh of relief before realizing something very important.

"Shit! Molly!" Serena exclaimed before digging into her purse to find her phone. After fumbling for a few minutes, the blond was able to locate the device in question. With numb fingers she flipped the phone open and dialed her friend's number.

"Serena, are you okay?" Molly asked, her voice thick with worry. "Where are you? I don't think I can wait for you much longer if I want to get home."

"Can you even drive in this, Moll?" Serena replied. Now it was her turn to be worried.

"O'course I can, silly, but what about you? I put your bike on top of the car when I got out here, just as the rain was starting. How are you going to get home? I don't have enough gas to come get you once this thing dies down," Molly informed.

"I… I don't know," Serena said softly, her voice nervous. She couldn't very well go outside in this weather but she also couldn't bring herself to ask Darien for shelter until the storm passed. "Why don't you wait on me just two more minutes? I'm going to try and get to the car. But are you sure you can drive in this? I mean, really, Molly, that can't be safe."

"I've driven in worse, Rena," Molly said, stating the obvious. It was true. Serena could list at least five times when Molly had driven through blizzards and near-tornado like winds to get to her ex-boyfriend house due to the fact that he was too scared to ever drive a car, forget what the weather was like. And while the blond didn't agree, she understood why her friend did it. Of course, none of that really mattered now. Melvin was back home, probably safe and warm in his house. The couple had decided to not try the whole long distance drama and she couldn't blame them.

"I know," Serena mumbled as she glanced out the window next to the front door. "Let me call you back and let you know what's going on, okay?"

"Sounds good." And with that, Molly hung up.

"You're not going out in that," Darien said, his face unreadable, quite unlike his tone. It sounded like he was angry with her for even suggesting it. Was he always angry? Did his voice always sound so unpleasant and filled with malice? And if he was always in a mood, how could he stand it? Serena couldn't begin to imagine a life without laughter.

"I don't want to impose," Serena explained as she reflexively cringed at the sound of another clap of thunder ringing through the room.

"You're not," he insisted as his eyes narrowed. His voice did not leave room for argument as Andrew stepped into the front hall, this time accompanied by a tall girl with long blond hair similar to her own.

"So you're staying, huh?" Andrew asked as he draped his arm over the girl's shoulders.

"I guess I don't have much of a choice," Serena sighed as she took one more look out the window to double check. Yep, she was staying.

"Well then welcome to Shields Manor. I'm Mina Aino, Andrew's girlfriend and maid around here," the blond informed.

"It's nice to meet you, Mina, I'm Serena Tsukino," Serena replied, trying to control her surprise for not the first time that day. She would have never guessed that the young woman in front of her was a maid.

"Right, well, I'll be off to get the vacuum. This mess isn't going to clean itself up," Mina said with a shrug before detaching herself from Andrew to do her job.

"Luna!" Darien shouted over the din of the storm before anyone could say anything else.

"Yes Master Darien?" Luna asked as she soundlessly entered the room seconds later.

"Take Ms. Tsukino to one of the guest rooms and ask Raye to bring her something more presentable to wear," Darien demanded after taking in Serena's disheveled appearance. The blond had to agree. The previous scuffle with the elements as well as her tumble to the floor left her looking like she had gotten dressed in the dark that morning. Not to mention that her clothing was damp from the rain. She could already feel the cold seeping down into her bones.

"Thank you," Serena said softly before following the dark haired woman up a wide set of stairs. Did she have any idea what she was getting into? No. Did she care at this point? Not really. Anything to keep her warm and safe from the storm would do for the moment. Did she still want to kiss the angry, mysterious man who was potentially still standing in the hallway, questioning Andrew about the finer details of her life? Absolutely. Was she going to do anything about it? No freaking way.

I've avoided these types of men for my entire life and I'm not going to make that kind of mistake now, Serena reminded herself as Luna stopped in front of a large, heavy-looking oak door. She would probably have to make this her mantra for her stay in this house, but she couldn't let herself become like one of those girls who followed Diamond around town. She couldn't and wouldn't let herself fall for a man who was no good for her.

"Miss Raye will be along shortly," Luna said as she pushed open the door to the room Serena would temporarily inhabit.

"Thank you," Serena replied, minding her manners once again before walking into the guest room and letting out another involuntary gasp. And this time there was no thunder or lighting to provoke that type of reaction.

* * *

**A/N: Well, it is a manor, isn't it? What did she expect? A cot, wardrobe and a bare light bulb?**

**Anyway, I would like to thank all of you for reading this chapter and, to those who commented on last chapter, I thank you for that as well. Please review and let me know what you think!  
**

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby  
**


	5. Ready

**Disclaimer-****Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is Ready by Cherie.  


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**Chapter 5:**

Darien watched Serena walk up the main staircase, cursing himself for having a moment of weakness. How could he allow her to stay? He could already feel discomfort worming it's way up his spine, discomfort that would most likely morph into something much worse that would probably lead him to lash out at the only visitor the manor had seen in ages.

"Darien, breathe," Andrew reminded his friend. "She's harmless."

"I don't know her and I don't like her. She doesn't belong here. The minute the storm's over, she's gone and that's it," Darien replied, leaving no room for argument.

"Don't worry, Darien. Things will go back to normal soon enough," Andrew said with a sigh. "Just control yourself around Serena. She's a sweet girl and I don't want her walking out of here scared. I would like to continue being friends with her."

"Fine," Darien said before heading back to his wing of the manor in order to set his emotions straight. He owed Andrew that much, so he would just have to suck it up and find a way to stay civil and not let this strange girl upset him.

* * *

"Perfect," Andrew mumbled as he ran a hand through his hair.

"What wrong?" Mina asked curiously as she walked back into the front hall, this time with the heavy vacuum trailing noisily behind her.

"The whole Serena situation," Andrew replied as he walked over to the vacuum cleaner and pulled out the retractable cord to plug it in for Mina.

"Thanks," Mina said as she flashed her boyfriend a grateful smile. "What do you mean? What situation?"

"Darien's going to kill her before the storm's done," Andrew answered plainly, as if pointing out the obvious.

"I don't think so," Mina shot back knowingly.

"Are you kidding me? Have you met Darien? He doesn't exactly like new people," Andrew retorted. He knew and understood why his best friend acted the way he did, and, more than that, he even put up with it. It was because of this knowledge that he spoke with such conviction. It was because of this knowledge that he worried for both Serena and perhaps even Darien. His friend might not want the girl to be in the manor, but every second she stayed in this house it became more and more likely that the moody young man would blow up at her and probably later regret it. Well, maybe regret it later. Either way, this meant a headache for the blond and he was never in the mood for that.

"You're wrong," she replied, her voice confident. "Did you see the way Darien looked at her? She's not like any other girl he's ever met and he knows it."

"What are you talking about? The only females he's interacted with in the last five years consist of you, Luna, Diana, Lita, Raye, Serena's friend and Serena. How can you make a statement like that?" Andrew asked incredulously. As much as he wanted to believe he was wrong and Mina was right, how could he? Especially when she suggested that the reason Darien would pass on verbally abusing Serena was that he liked her. Of all the rationale, that was by far the craziest.

"It doesn't matter how many girls he's met, it only matters who he's met," Mina said cryptically.

"If you say so," Andrew sighed, not wanting to fight with Mina. He was very much aware that fighting with any girl, not to mention one that was also his girlfriend, was a terrible idea, especially when he wanted her to be right.

"I say so," Mina said before pecking him on the cheek and turning on the vacuum. And just like that, the disagreement was over.

"I'm off to the kitchen. I have dinner planned for us tonight so I'll pick you up from your room at eight," Andrew informed before taking off.

"Sounds perfect," Mina called after him with a dreamy look on her face that Andrew just caught when he turned back to catch one more glimpse of his girlfriend.

"Lita, you got that picnic basket ready for tonight?" Andrew asked as he walked into the kitchen.

"Almost finished," Lita replied. "It's so cute that you and Mina still do these things."

"I know," Andrew said smugly, his ego inflating just a little bit due to the compliment. He worked very hard to work around his busy schedule in order to make time for his girlfriend and he was damn proud of himself for it. "So what are you doing tonight?"

"Raye and I are setting up a girl's night that consists of dinner, manicures and a movie with Diana so Luna and Artemis can have the night to themselves," Lita said.

"That's cute. I should spend more time with Diana. I feel like I haven't seen the runt in ages." It was true. The last time Andrew had spent any quality time with his surrogate niece was probably a month or so ago, just before taking on his job at the arcade.

"So take her tomorrow night," Lita shrugged. "Mina, Raye and I are having a proper girl's night and Luna and Artemis really do need the time off. They work harder than anyone in this entire house."

"I'll talk to Luna tomorrow," Andrew nodded, thankful for the tip.

"Now get, and take your dinner with you. I have to finish off dinner for Darien and our guest," Lita insisted as she dropped the last of the food she had prepared as a favor for her friends into the basket and handed it to the tall blond.

"Wait, Darien and Serena are having dinner alone tonight?" Andrew asked as he processed exactly what Lita had just said.

"Yeah, everyone else has other plans," Lita replied, her tone light, clearly not realizing the full implications of her words.

"Pray for her," Andrew mumbled worriedly.

"Huh?" Lita asked curiously as she turned from the stove to catch what Andrew had said.

"Nothing," he muttered as he grabbed his and Mina's meal and made his way out of the kitchen and up to his room where he would set up for later that night. "I'll see you later."

"Enjoy!" Lita shouted after him.

"Thanks," Andrew replied absent mindedly, hoping his friend would hear him as he walked up the staircase. He had bigger things to worry about, like Serena's impending dinner with Darien. Perhaps he should warn her?

"Shit," he groaned as he his eyes caught a glimpse of the old grandfather clock in the hall. It was getting late and he was running out of time before his date. "I guess I'm just going to have to pray that Darien doesn't kill her," he whispered to himself.

* * *

"Are you sure this is okay?" Serena asked as she looked down at the black denim mini skirt Raye had insisted she put on. Apparently, the dark haired girl was the seamstress of the house. She mended, adjusted, bought and took care of all the clothing in the house. Not that the petite blond could think of a reason why anyone would need a seamstress now a days. Couldn't they just go shopping in town like everyone else?

"It's cute!" Raye insisted as she passed the blond a matching navy top just as Serena set her phone down on the nightstand by the bed. She had just finished assuring Molly that everything would be okay for the fifth time since they had hung up twenty minutes earlier and it was getting annoying.

"It is, but it's also a little short. Do you maybe have something a little bit longer?" Serena asked hopefully as she tried to keep her eyes trained on the woman she was talking to. The grandeur of this guest room was so unnecessary and incredibly distracting for someone who most definitely wasn't used to it.

"I know, it's a little much," Raye said matter-of-factly.

"Huh?" Serena asked as she jerked out of her daze and refocused her attention.

"The room," Raye replied as she set her hands on her hips.

"Yeah, sorry, it's just a lot to take in, I guess," Serena shrugged as she unconsciously tugged at the hem of the short skirt she was wearing.

"Hm, I see your point with the skirt," Raye muttered to herself before turning back to the pile of clothing she had brought into the room with her fifteen minutes earlier. "How about this?" she asked as she picked out a black sweater with a deep v-neck and a black plaid skirt that was just long enough to be acceptable by Serena's standards.

"That could work," Serena replied as she took the outfit from Raye and quickly changed. "Or not," she said, retracting her last statement as she pulled at the sweater in an attempt to cover more of her chest.

"I'm sure I have a white tank top somewhere here that could fix that," Raye muttered to herself as she moved a few brightly colored tops aside and pulled out the object she had been looking for. "Aha!" she exclaimed as she handed the top to Serena. Thirty seconds later, the dark haired girl was beaming at her handiwork.

"Thanks," Serena said gratefully as she pulled the sleeves of the sweater down over her hands nervously. She had already been informed that she was to have dinner with the master of the house alone that night and she wasn't looking forward to it.

"Now let me do something with your hair," Raye insisted as she steered Serena to the vanity and sat her down.

"No, it's okay, I'll just put it up like I usually do," Serena replied as she reached up to take care of her hair.

"I don't think so," Raye replied as she swatted Serena's small hands aside. "You have such soft, long, blond hair. I don't know why you don't wear it down. It's so much prettier that way."

Ten minutes and a little protesting later, Serena's hair was flowing down her back, her hair so long that it was only a few inches off the ground. Raye had brushed it, used a pair of scissor from inside one of the drawers of the vanity to trim off the dead ends and stuck a few bobby pins into her it to make it hang just right. It looked amazing.

"Wow, thanks Raye," Serena said, a tinge of awe in her voice as she reached back to run her hands through her hair.

"Anytime," Raye replied. "You better hurry up, it's almost eight and Darien won't like it if you're late. He's a little… well, to be honest, he's a little crazy and has quite the temper. Be careful, okay? I like you."

"Thanks, I like you too," Serena said hesitantly, not sure what else to say to that. Of course, she wasn't the kind of girl who would take advice for granted, especially when she had previously heard something similar from her best friend.

"Well, good luck," Raye said as she set a comforting hand on Serena's shoulder for a brief moment before pulling away, gathering all the clothing she had come in with and quickly leaving the room.

"Okay, time to go," Serena mumbled to herself as she got to her feet. It was only once she exited the room that she realized she had no idea where she was going.

* * *

**A/N: Lost much?**

**Once again, thanks to all the readers and reviewers. Feel free to leave me feedback. I love feedback.**

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby  
**


	6. SOS

**Disclaimer-****Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is S.O.S. by The Jonas Brothers. Or ABBA. Whichever makes you happier.**

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**Chapter 6:**

Serena walked for what felt like days. The manor was huge with an insane number of corridors that either led to a dead end or doubled back on itself. Nothing seemed to lead to a staircase that would take her downstairs, nothing looked familiar and, even worse, everything was covered in a thick layer of dust that made it very clear to her that nobody had come this way in quite some time, not even Mina.

"Shit," Serena mumbled as she glanced down at her watch to check just how late she was. "Shit, fuck, ass." If Ami or Molly could hear her now they would most definitely be looking at her funny. Cursing was not something the blond did often. While sometimes she couldn't quite keep her opinions to herself or stop herself from being so stubborn, she could almost always control her temper and that was something she prided herself on.

But this was one of the few exceptions to the almost always that dictated her control over her temper. As much as she didn't want to admit it, Serena was afraid of Mr. Shields, so much so that even in her mental stream of consciousness she called him by his title and not by his first name. It wasn't that he'd done or said anything particularly terrible to her, but it was just the knowledge that he could, and most likely would, verbally harass her if she ever figured out where she was that spooked her just as badly as the incessant lightning and thunder did.

"I need a map," she sighed as she approached to yet another dead end. She was just about to turn around when she noticed that the door at the end of the hall was slightly ajar.

"Hello?" Serena called hopefully as she tiptoed her way closer to the door. Maybe it led somewhere helpful? At this point, she wasn't sure, but an open door was the closest sign of life she'd seen since Raye had left her twenty minutes earlier and she wasn't about to ignore it.

Serena held her breath as she pulled open the door to find a rather large black hole in front of her. She wasn't sure what she had been hoping to find, but this definitely wasn't it. A small pout appeared on her face as she reached for a light switch to reveal to contents of the pitch-black room. Her small hands skimmed the walls nervously and her gut clenched in fear of touching a number of potentially gross things that could be hanging or crawling on the wall. Her imagination, fueled by her fear of the dark, was going a mile a minute, conjuring images that even the hardiest of men would have shied away from.

"Maybe it's further in," Serena mused, hating that her curiosity was getting the best of her, no matter how scared she was. She edged one foot into the room, one hand on the doorknob was she went, hoping that connection would be enough to save her, just in case.

"Stairs?" she mumbled to herself as her foot hit empty air. "What the hell?" After thinking about it for a minute or two, Serena let her foot drop to the next step as she reached out her free hand to find the railing that would guide her down the stairs.

"Oh please tell me this will get me un-lost," Serena prayed as she let go of the doorknob behind her and slowly made her way down the stairs. It was all going pretty decently too, until one of the creaking steps she had just placed all of her weight on gave out, the wooden beam breaking underneath her and swallowing her foot as a consequence.

"Oh crap," Serena mumbled as she reached down, wrapped her hands around her ankle and tried to yank it free. "Ouch!" she exclaimed as the broken edges of the steps jabbed into her leg. "I'm going to die here, aren't I?"

* * *

"Where is she?" Darien muttered as he paced the ballroom. "Where could that stupid girl have gone off to?" He would have been ranting and raving at one of his employees if not for the fact that they had gone off to enjoy their evenings. Hell, he had half a mind to pull them all away from their activities just so someone would be around to listen to him. The only thing stopping him was that he owed them this night and, even though he didn't respect the blond he had allowed to stay in his house while the storm was overhead, he did respect the people who lived with him.

"What is going on here?" he asked himself in annoyance as he glanced at the clock yet again. She was a half hour late. That was more than just fashionably late, not that Darien would have put up with that either. He was hungry and he wanted to eat, but of course, he wouldn't do that. He had promised Andrew to play nice and wait for their visitor to come downstairs before eating.

"Well, if she's not coming here, I'm going to have to go find her," he resolved as he took off in a rage. It took him only a few short minutes to reach the guest room Raye had said the blond was staying in. After a few short knocks that went without response, Darien let out a snarl and pushed open the door to the room to find it empty.

"Of course," he muttered, his angry frown deepening as he turned down a hallway, trying to pick the most logical course she would have taken in her attempt to find the dining room. Why would Raye show a complete stranger where the dining room was? It wasn't like she had never been there before. Why wouldn't she know where to go? The inward sarcastic monologue was really running out of control.

"Stupid, absent minded assholes," Darien grumbled as he walked, even though he didn't mean it. The truth was that he probably would have forgotten as well, not that he would ever admit it out loud. Although, he would do his best to not mention it to Raye. She was the only one who wouldn't let him win an argument and because of that, their fights were legendary and lengthy. It was bad enough that he felt antsy due to the stranger. He didn't need to fight with the feisty dark haired girl as well.

Darien quickly made his way through the manor, stopping every so often to listen for unfamiliar noises or check certain rooms that he thought she might have entered. He was getting nervous. What if she was hurt? What if she was lost? When was the appropriate time to let the others know what had happened and set up a proper search party? The Shields property was a large one, even when only taking the indoor portion into consideration. All of these thoughts raced through his head just before a nasty thought dawned on him.

"What if she's in my wing of the manor?" he whispered to himself as he came to a stop in the middle of a wide, abandoned hallway. It had taken him nearly an hour of searching to think of this and his absentmindedness made him want to curse himself, just as it made him want to curse Raye.

"Fuck," he swore as he turned to run to the other side of the house where he was sure he would find the petite blond nosily rummaging through his belongings. He had only taken three steps in the opposite direction when he heard a loud banging noise that stopped him in his tracks.

"Who's there?" Darien asked, his eyes narrowed as he spun around and careful examined his surroundings. Again he heard the noise, this time accompanied by hoarse shouting. The sounds were coming from the end of the hallway.

"Ms. Tsukino?" he pressed as he made it to the door that stood at the dead end. Darien reached forward into the dark and tugged on the string that was hanging down from the ceiling, successfully turning on the light.

"Help!" the blond midway down the stairs begged, her voice rising as the light flooded the stairwell. "Please!" It was the distress in her voice that caused any and all distaste for the girl to fly out the window. He now knew that he had to help her and he wouldn't hate doing it either.

"Hang on," Darien said needlessly as he bounded down the stairs to find his guest shaking with tears in her eyes and her foot stuck in a broken step. "Jesus, are you bleeding?" he asked as he tried to keep the fear off of his face. He had never been a big fan of blood.

"I d-don't think so," she replied anxiously as she tried to pull her foot out of the hole.

"Don't do that," Darien insisted as he noted the marks on her ankle. That wasn't the first time she had attempted to free herself.

"Please just get it loose. Please, please, please get me unstuck," she begged frantically as she tightened her grip on her calf and tugged again. At that moment, he realized he didn't know how, but she managed to slip her way into his frozen heart, or had at least she had begun to the minute she had walked into his house and tried to rationalize everything for him in her calm, patient voice. And that's why he would contain his temper and not yell at her for getting hysterical. He would just limit it to being pissed for having to repeat himself.

"Stop that," Darien growled irritably. "Hang on a second, let me do it." And with that, he reached into his back pocket and pulled out a switchblade.

Ten seconds later, a sharp knife was chiseling away at the edges of the fractured step. Darien glanced up briefly as he worked to catch Serena watching him, her wide blue eyes terrified yet trusting.

"Don't worry, I'll have you out in a minute," Darien assured hesitantly as he chipped back the pieces of wood that were digging into Serena's leg.

"Thank you," Serena mumbled as her tears subsided ever so slightly, even though he could still feel her trembling.

"You're welcome," he replied, his voice just as quiet as hers as he finished widening the hole just enough to slip her small foot out.

"Oh thank God, can we please get out of here?" Serena asked hopefully, her question coming out all garbled together from the rush of relief she felt as she pulled her leg close to her chest.

"Let's go," Darien replied shortly as he got to his feet and then reached out a hand for Serena to take. She smiled up at him briefly before taking it and letting him pull her up. His grimace broke for a second, a small smile almost making it's way onto his face as the blond stumbled forward into him before quickly pulling back and following him up the stairs.

And they would have made it out of there okay if Darien hadn't tripped on the edge of one of the steps, his forehead hitting the railing as he went down.

* * *

**A/N: Oh the drama. I love the drama.**

**Now that I've finally finished this chapter, I would like to thank all of you for the reviews. I love feedback, so please continue letting me know what you think, whether it's positive or negative.**

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby  
**


	7. All At Once

**Disclaimer-****Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is All At Once by The Fray.

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**Chapter 7:**

"Darien!" Serena shrieked in surprise as she crouched down in concern. "Darien, are you okay? Oh Darien, please wake up," she implored Darien's prone body as she shook his shoulder in an attempt to wake him up.

"Oh God," she mumbled fearfully as she dropped back off of her legs and tilted her head against the wall. "Could this day get any worse?"

* * *

Molly drove down the road with rain pounding down on her little, rusty car as she carefully maneuvered her way into town. It wasn't easy to drive in a storm like this, but she could do it, just as she had assured her worried best friend. She was just driving past the arcade when her car, once again, sputtered to a stop.

"Could this day get any worse?" she groaned as she hit her head against the steering wheel and pulled the key out of the ignition. "Stupid, stupid car." With that, Molly tucked her keys into her pocket and braced herself for the sprint from her car to the arcade.

"Damn it's cold," Molly mumbled as she entered the building, her coat and shoes drenched from the short walk through the rain. "Can someone help me?" she asked hopefully as she scanned the crowd for a likely assistant.

"Molly?" Diamond asked, his voice cool and suave as he approached the soaked female. Molly's breath caught in her chest. The most charming man in town was talking to her. Of course, she was still completely and totally in love with Melvin, but he was _talking_ to her!

"Oh thank God, Diamond," Molly gushed, joy returning to her features. "I need your help. I've had the most miserable day and now I'm out of gas again and Serena's stuck at this awful man's house because of the storm and I don't know what to do."

"Woah, woah, Molly, slow down, what happened?" Diamond asked, a concerned frown on his face, one that made Molly spill all without a second thought.

"Well, I was on my way to the fair and I ran out of gas. Then, this terrible man caught me trespassing on his property and almost called the police on me, but I called Serena. She came and sent me to the car to fill it with gas while she dealt with Mr. Shields but the storm got really bad so she couldn't leave. Now I'm out of gas again and she's stuck there. I don't know when this storm's going to stop or if she's okay or how she's going to get home when this is all over. It's all my fault and I don't know what to do," Molly sobbed, the weight of the day so heavy that she finally broke.

"There now, don't worry sweetheart, we'll work through this," Diamond assured as he set a comforting hand on her shoulder and guided her towards the booth his brother was occupying.

Molly was more than just grateful Diamond was there. He was one of those big, strong, charming men that could solve these sorts of problems, not to mention he had a space for her at his booth while all the other ones were full. It appeared that a lot of people had gotten caught in the arcade just as the storm started making it a little difficult to walk outside.

"Thank you so much, Diamond, you don't know what this means to me," Molly insisted as she sat down next to Sapphire, a smile of relief breaking out on her freckled face. He would help her. Everything would okay.

* * *

"Shit," Darien mumbled, his head throbbing as he opened his eyes to find a pair of baby blue ones locked on his face.

"Oh my God, Darien, tell me you're okay," Serena babbled on. Of course, she continued rambling after that, but he wasn't really paying attention. He was still stuck on the first sentence she had said, which made it seem like she was actually concerned about his welfare.

"Darien?" Serena asked nervously before biting her lower lip.

"Mmm?" he asked dazedly, still unable to keep his focus on what she was saying for more than a few seconds.

"I really hope you don't have a concussion," Serena muttered to herself. "Are you alright?"

"I think so?" Darien replied as he reached up and rubbed his forehead before pulling back from the pain his actions induced. "Ow, fuck, what the hell? How did I get here?" he swore.

"You wedged my foot out of the stairs and then you fell and hit your head. I pulled you up the stairs and then I tried to wake you," Serena said softly as she reached forward and tenderly pushed his hair away from the wound.

"God it kills," Darien groaned as he pulled away from Serena, even though her touch did nothing but ease the pain ever so slightly. A long-standing reflex wasn't about to undo itself in the course of five minutes.

"Yeah, I fell like that a couple weeks ago. You should be fine with a little ice," Serena shrugged. "I was just worried because you were unconscious."

"Ok," he muttered as he tried to sit up, only too be overcome by a wave of dizziness.

"Take it easy," Serena insisted as she set a hand on Darien's back to support him before he fell backwards and hurt his head even worse. "Let me help you."

"Fine," he growled after a moment's hesitation. He didn't want to let her help him, but he didn't have much choice if he wanted to get some ice to ease the throbbing in his head.

"Alright, up you go," Serena said. Darien frowned in confusion at her oddly optimistic tone but did his part to make it easier for her to help him up.

"Thanks," Darien grumbled reluctantly as he allowed Serena to drape his arm over her small shoulders and wrap her arm around his waist to support him.

"You're welcome," she replied as they set off, Darien verbally guiding them as Serena supported most of his weight as they went.

The pair navigated in silence moving slowly, yet steadily, back to the inhabited portion of the manor. There wasn't much for them to say, as far as Darien could tell. He couldn't say anything mean because she was quite literally supporting him and he couldn't think of anything nice because, well, he just wasn't used to being nice to anyone, unless they lived in his house. And even then it didn't mean anything. He was usually only nice to Diana, and that was because she couldn't understand why her surrogate uncle was such a resentful jackass.

"Where can I find the ice?" Serena asked when Darien was finally sitting down in his favorite antique armchair that was situated in front of the fireplace Artemis had lit only two hours earlier.

"Walk into the hallway, make a left. There's a door underneath the stairwell that leads to the kitchen," Darien instructed, his words still clipped due to the ache in his head.

"I'll be right back," she replied softly as she quickly exited the room, Darien watching her as she went. He felt like a little bit of a pervert for checking out his houseguest from behind, but it was a reaction he couldn't control. That knowledge only made him hate himself three times as much as he already did.

"Fuck my life," he whimpered in pain as he dropped his head into his hands, which only caused him to shoot back up, his head hurting even more as a consequence. He never learned his lesson, did he?

"What are you doing?" Serena scolded as she walked back into the room, a plastic bag of ice in one hand and a tall glass of water and two pills in another.

"Hurting myself on purpose," Darien growled sarcastically.

"Oh stop that and calm down," she said, continuing to reprimand him for his bad behavior as she set the ice against his forehead and handed him the aspirin and glass. "You're just making things worse for yourself."

"No, I think you're making things worse," Darien shot back before swallowing the pills with the water she had brought him. "If you hadn't gotten lost and broken that step, none of this would have happened."

"Well if you had had the foresight to have someone escort me to the dining room, I wouldn't have gotten lost, now would I?" she replied, her tone acidic, just like his.

"And if you're stupid friend hadn't gotten lost and run out of gas, you wouldn't be here in the first place!" he exclaimed as he arrived at the crux of the problem.

"Well maybe if you had given Molly gas instead of upsetting her, she wouldn't have called me and no one would be stuck here, would they?" Serena asked rhetorically, a superior look on her face.

Darien opened his mouth to respond to her latest accusation, but nothing came out. What was he supposed to say? She was right. It was just like Andrew and Raye had always told him: if you fight with a woman, be prepared to lose. Females had this odd power to always make it your fault if you're a male.

"Oh, close your mouth before a bee flies in," Serena said with a sigh. "I didn't mean to get into a fight with you, but sometimes I'm just too damn stubborn."

What was she doing? She won. Why was she apologizing? Why was she giving in? The shock on his face must have said it all.

"It's not about who's right and who's wrong, it's about what you're arguing about. What we're fighting about right now? It's not very important, nor will the outcome change anything. What happened happened. I got stuck and you got hurt but we're both here now," Serena replied, successfully wiping the confused look off of Darien's face.

"You're confusing," Darien frowned, his brows drawing together in confusion. "Ouch!" he exclaimed as his actions reminded him just how sore his head still was.

"Relax Darien, try not to think too hard. Maybe this won't hurt as much if you slow down," Serena informed him as she shifted the icepack on his head ever so slightly.

"I'm sorry," he said finally, even though his tone made it very clear he didn't want to admit it.

"What did I say about thinking, Mr. Shields?" Serena asked him, one eyebrow raised teasingly. And it was in that moment that Darien realized that not only was he calling her Serena instead of Ms. Tsukino, but she was calling him Darien and not Mr. Shield as well. If only he hadn't injured his head earlier today, he would be banging it against the wall now. He was really getting attached. He didn't know why, when or even how this had happened to him. All he knew was that it wasn't a good thing and he hated his heart for being so weak. He hated that he couldn't bring himself to rile up his temper and say the angry words that would most definitely push her out of his life forever. And mostly, he hated the fact that by selfishly not pushing her away, he was dragging her down into the deep hole of despair he called his life.

* * *

**A/N: This sounds like it could get super dramatic and angry.**

**Anyway, my mom's flying in for a long weekend so I'll try to write and post one more chapter before the weekend, but that's highly unlikely. So instead, just do what I do while I wait for a fanfiction I like to update: watch Scrubs, starting from season 1 (any good sitcom will do, but Scrubs is the one I'm watching right now). Either that or read other fanfictions.**

**Thanks again for reading and all of the reviews that followed!**

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby  
**


	8. Surrender

**Disclaimer-Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is Surrender by The Calling.

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**Chapter 8:**

Serena's stomach rumbled loudly after only five minutes of sitting silently on the arm of Darien's chair. Of course she was hungry. She hadn't eaten in hours.

"My head feels numb now so maybe we can take a break and eat the dinner Lita made us," Darien suggested as he stared straight ahead into the fire. Serena frowned at his profile. He was such a confusing man. One second he was yelling at her, just as everyone had predicted he would, and the next moment he was suggesting they go eat their dinner in the politest of tones. As much as she didn't want him to be an ass to her, she would like him to pick a side.

"If you say so," Serena shrugged. Who was she to disagree with him when he was playing nice?

"C'mon," he grumbled as he lifted himself from the chair and led Serena towards the dining room. Serena followed him closely, her eyes watching him as they walked, just in case he stumbled. She wasn't about to watch him fall again.

"Wow, this is… this is incredible," Serena mumbled as she stopped moving only seconds after setting foot in the room, her mind forgetting her task as her eyes scanned the room. She knew the house was huge and extravagant but the detailing in the molding on ceiling was a little bit much, not to mention the large marble floor opposite the dining room table, the grand piano in the corner of the room, the biggest fireplace she had ever seen and a dining room table so long that she wasn't even sure she knew enough people she would be willing to have dinner with to fill it.

"The food's only getting colder," Darien reminded from where he was standing, his hands gripping the chair he had pulled out for her. He, apparently, hadn't felt the need to stop and take in the grandeur of the room.

"Bizarre," Serena mumbled before shaking her head and walking over to take her seat, still unclear as to why he was being so kind all of the sudden. "Thank you," she said as she allowed Darien to push her chair in for her.

"You're welcome," he replied demurely as he walked around to his seat. No, really, what was going on here?

"So, how long have you been living here?" Serena asked as she started pushing around the cold food on her plate in an attempt to miraculously make it warm up.

"My whole life," Darien replied shortly before digging into his food. Apparently he didn't care what temperature his meal was. Either that or he really didn't want to talk. Serena could accept both answers to her unasked question.

She sighed as she started to eat the food on her plate, which wasn't so bad, as it turned out. Serena would most certainly owe whoever cooked the food a thank you.

"So how long have you lived in town?" Darien asked, filling the silence with a tedious question.

"Since August, for the school year," Serena answered. She had decided only minutes earlier while they were sitting in silence that if he was going to be nice, then she was going to be nice too. She was stubborn, but not childish. She had grown out of that a long time ago.

"What are you majoring in?" he questioned as his eyes met her. She was annoyed that he hadn't let her ask a question, as it was her turn, but she would answer anyway.

"I'm not sure yet, but maybe education or psychology," Serena shrugged before biting her lower lip, knowing exactly how generic and predictable her answer sounded. "What about you? What do you want to do?"

"I never really thought about it," Darien replied offhandedly before taking a sip of his wine.

"So you just stay here?" Serena asked, crinkling her nose in curiosity before she could stop herself.

"What else would you have me do?" he spat out as he stared down at his food. Serena stayed silent, figuring that he didn't want the question. Or, well, that's what she thought until he continued. "No, really, what would you have me do? Leave this place? Go to college and get a job only to come back to this house and live with the same people I've lived with since I was 6 years old? Nothing will change. It's not like I need a job. Have you seen this house? What does it tell you?"

He was getting angry. She could see his face turning red and his hands clenching his silverware so tightly that his knuckles were turning white. Was she supposed to answer him? Well, he was going to be mad either way, so she might as well meet the bullet head on.

"You want to know something?" Serena asked before pressing on without letting him get a word in edgewise. "I don't know anything about you, but this is true for everyone: you have to grow up. You're an adult. At a certain age, no matter how much money you have, you have to stop hanging onto your childhood and become a social person with a real life. I can't imagine what fuels to you stay in this God awful, musty, humongous house all the time, but maybe you should get over it. I'm sure whatever happened was terrible, but you can't dwell on it."

"Shut up!" Darien roared as he jumped up from his seat, his silverware hitting the table with a loud clattering sound and his chair thudding against the floor as it fell backwards. "Just shut the hell up. You don't fucking know me and you never will."

"Hm, maybe I shouldn't have been so harsh, I did just meet him," Serena muttered to herself as she surveyed the destruction Darien had caused in his rage. "Well, time to clean up." With that, the petite blond got to her feet and put the room back together. After gulping down the rest of her meal in a few bites, Serena carried her plate and the rest of the used flatware, except what her dinner companion had been using, into the kitchen. She quickly washed everything in the sink and then returned to the dining room to retrieve Darien's meal. She wasn't sure where he had gone, but she was almost positive there would be something broken every few feet or so, which would help her immensely in her quest.

"Ah the predictability of a man who I hardly even know," Serena said as she eyed the broken vase on the floor. From there on, she just followed the trail of wrecked and torn objects until she reached a particularly bleak part of the house. This was where her clues stopped, but that was only because the walls were bear and there were no furnishings in the hall.

"What the hell?" she asked as she tried to figure out what was going on here. "Oh well," Serena shrugged. "Darien?" she shouted, not caring if he would reply or not. Chances are, after about five minutes of her noisemaking, he would get so angry with her that he would forget his previous upset with her and come out of the woodwork to yell at her some more. "Huh, it's weird that he's so obvious. Darien!" she pressed on while pondering the thought.

And just as she expected, a few minutes later, Darien stormed into the hall, the furious expression still on his face.

"What? Back to start in with me again?" Darien growled.

"I brought you your dinner. I didn't want you to go hungry," Serena replied softly, ignoring his anger as she offered him his plate. She couldn't bring herself to fight with him anymore.

And then the weirdest thing happened: Darien took the plate from her and sat down on the floor before digging into his meal.

"Aren't you going to sit?" Darien asked as he glanced up at Serena briefly before turning his attention back to his food.

"I'm sorry," Serena muttered as she sat down across from Darien and folded her legs against her chest.

"Don't be, you're right," Darien said as he dropped his fork and set his plate aside.

"Say what now?" Serena asked in surprise.

"Andrew and Raye keep telling me not to fight with women," Darien grumbled as he reached over to his plate, picked up a piece of broccoli and popped it into his mouth.

"Wait, what are you trying to tell me here?" Serena asked, still not understanding.

"There's a reason for all of this," he said simply, a passive look on his face.

"You're not going to tell me, are you?" Serena guessed. She wasn't sure that was what he was going to say this time around, but that was what she was going to go with.

"My parents died when I was a kid. Luna and Artemis raised me after that. Raye, Mina, Andrew and Lita grew up here with me, all of them are kids of the people who used to work here. I guess the four of them felt bad for their parents and let them off the hook. I don't blame them. I'm a miserable piece of work," Darien admitted as he ducked his head.

Serena's eyes widened in surprise in response to this admission. She hadn't thought he would say anything and was even more shocked to hear what was actually wrong with his life.

"Yeah, the truth is disturbing, isn't it?" Darien mumbled.

"Well that explains some stuff," Serena finally said.

* * *

He didn't know why he told her. He couldn't explain what he was thinking or feeling in that moment, but he couldn't stop himself. It just came out. He didn't know what it was about her round face, long blond hair and big blue eyes that made him want to justify why he was such an ogre, but it did.

"I guess," Darien replied as he grabbed his plate and started stabbing the broccoli again. It was thoughtful of her to bring him dinner though, even though her methods of dragging him out of his room were more than just a little bit annoying.

"Stop that," Serena insisted as she reached over and eased the fork out of Darien's hand. "It's not going to help anything."

"Are you always so level headed?" he asked bluntly, his midnight blue eyes staring her down.

"I try," Serena shrugged. "But I want you to know I'm glad you told me."

"I'm glad I told you too," Darien replied awkwardly. He really was happy he told her he just couldn't really express that fact properly.

"Good," Serena said as relief flooded her face. Apparently she understood that he wasn't so good with his emotions, which was impressive because Mina was still having issues with it.

"You're thinking about going into psychology so you must understand just how fucked up I am. I mean, you know my story and you know I'm pretty much a shut in," Darien pointed out. This was her window out. He could get over it if she left now, but if she stayed any longer, he might have to lock her in the guest room and never let her leave.

"I know," she informed, her voice slow and patient, wittily questioning his intelligence.

"Leave me alone," he protested, although now there was no malice in his tone. This time he was playing the game, just as his friends had always wanted him to. He was making progress, like no one had ever thought he would. He was falling for the girl with the big heart and bright smile, a fact he couldn't and wouldn't try to deny anymore.

* * *

**A/N: Hm. People were asking why Darien was being such an ass...**

**So thanks again for the reviews guys. I feel like a broken record saying that, but I mean it every time. Oh well. Please keep up with the feedback! I love to read what everyone's thinking.**

**Oh and there were some questions I've been meaning to address and I thought I should do that now before I forget again:**

**Ashlyn Darke - I don't envision them in any actual place. It's just some small town with a good college. I never really got that far in brainstorming. Molly, Ami and Serena are from a suburban community that is quite a bit larger than the town they live in now.**

**Shana Elmsford - I plan to involve Darien's garden in the story, but there isn't going to be a rose like there was in the movie. I couldn't really fit in the time limit idea without making the story sound archaic or fantastical. But roses do make a return later in the story and they're meaningful, that much I can promise.**

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby**


	9. Things Are Happening

**Disclaimer-****Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is Things Are Happening by Houston Calls.

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**Chapter 9:**

He had told her. He had spilled the beans and told her the nasty truth. The weirdest part was that she didn't have the reaction he was so sure she would have: one of pity and slow removal of herself from his life, not that she had been there for very long. Perhaps that was why he didn't really regret telling her. Well, that and, for some strange reason, he wanted her to know him so that she would accept him and his terrible behavior.

"So what do you want to do now?" Darien asked as a crash of thunder sounded through the hall. He didn't mind the weather. In fact, he found that storms suited him and his nasty personality.

"Hide from the rain?" Serena asked hopefully. He smiled slightly as he noted her arms, which were wrapped tightly around her waist and her fists, which were tightened into little balls.

"Relax, Serena, its just thunder," Darien said as he reached forward, took her small hands into his and loosened her grip.

"And lighting," she whimpered as she wrapped her fingers tightly around Darien's large palms. Her nails were digging into the back of his hands and it hurt, but for some reason he was putting up with it.

"And lightening, yes, but there has to be something that can make this better for you," he replied softly as he pressed her frozen hands together between his warm palms.

"Nope. I usually just wait this stuff out," Serena shrugged as the storm noisily made itself known once more, causing her to bite her lower lip and close her eyes tightly in fear.

Darien eyed her curiously as he tried to make heads or tails of her situation. What could he do to make this better for her? What was it that would take her mind off of what she feared? He could only think of one thing that would maybe impress her long enough to help her.

"Come with me, I have something to show you," Darien said as he jumped to his feet, pulling Serena up after him.

"Where are we going and what about your plate?" Serena asked excitedly, her emotions flipping from one extreme to the next in seconds. He didn't think he would ever understand her, but he enjoyed her presence. It, or rather she, was the thing in his life that he had needed for quite some time but could never bring himself to find.

"You'll see, it's a surprise," he insisted as he tightened his grip on her hand and quickened his pace all the while ignore her second question, knowing how bad he would feel about leaving behind his cutlery if he actually thought about.

"Well slow down!" she exclaimed with an urgency that got him to reduce his speed instantly, without a second thought. "I may love surprises, but I'm klutzy, so maybe we should try to not make me fall over my own feet. That might just improve the night just a little bit."

"Was tonight really that bad?" Darien asked, his heart clenching nervously as he continued walking down the hall. Why did he care so Goddamn much? And where the hell was Andrew? Why wasn't he here to listen to him rant like a crazy person? Wasn't that his job as best friend?

"Woah, woah, slow down Darien," Serena said as she tugged on his hand to pull him to a stop.

"What?" Darien asked, his voice sharp with aggression. He hated himself for reverting back to being mean, but just the possibility that she would take advantage of his vulnerability, even unintentionally, made him want to break something.

"Tonight was the craziest night of my entire life, Darien, and it wasn't the bad kind of crazy. And the truth is, if I was at home, like I should be, I'd be hiding under my covers with earplugs in my ears in an attempt to make myself feel better. Besides, I like you. You're interesting. I don't like people who aren't interesting," Serena informed with an honest, innocent look on her face. One he couldn't help but believe.

"I don't either," he grumbled, hating his insecurities. She definitely thought he was pathetic.

"So, Mr. Problem Solver, what is it that you have in store for me tonight?" Serena asked as she started walking down the hall, directionless as she pulled Darien behind her.

"Hey! Stop walking, we're here," Darien cried out as he yanked her to a stop for the second time in the last minute. He didn't know how she did it, but she managed to defy his every expectation. Well, there was still the chance she thought he was pathetic, but at least she didn't show it and that was enough for the time being.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she whined in annoyance as the thunder echoed through the hallway. "Oh hell!" Serena exclaimed as she unintentionally leapt forward into Darien.

"Are you okay?" Darien asked anxiously, his arms locked at his sides. He could understand why she was holding onto him but no matter what the reason, he couldn't seem to feel comfortable her with slim wrapped around his body.

"Mmhm," Serena mumbled into his chest as she nodded her head, her hair rubbing against him, making him want to run his hands through her long blond tresses.

"Okay, let's go, surprise time," he insisted as he set his hands on Serena's arms and pulled them off of him. "Close your eyes."

"What?" she asked in confusion. His first reaction was to yell at her, but the secondary emotion was much stronger, causing him to keep the biting words at bay, which was very unlike him.

"We've reached the surprise," Darien explained as if it was obvious.

"So I have to close my eyes because why, again?" She was impatient for him to reveal her surprise, that much he could tell, but he was going to spring this on her the right way. It was his one moment where he could do something like this and he wasn't about to pass it up.

"Shut up and close your eyes," he pressed as he rolled his eyes in annoyance.

With a simple shrug, Serena closer her eyes and held out a hand for her companion to take. After wrapping his fingers around hers, Darien sighed inwardly and used his free hand to push open the two large doors in front of them.

"Can I look now?" Serena asked as she blindly shifted from foot to foot in anticipation. If she were anyone else, he would have laughed at her.

"One second," he replied as he pulled his hand from Serena's reluctantly and flipped on the light switch, illuminating the room just as the storm let out another burst of anger.

"Darien!" Serena shrieked, her upset apparent as she did her best to keep her eyes closed.

"Serena, calm down, it's okay," He coaxed instinctively, just as he remembered his mother doing for him whenever he was scared as he hurried back to the petite blond. "You can open your eyes now."

He watched her carefully as she opened her big blue eyes, waiting for her reaction. That was probably another reason why he had orchestrated this spontaneous surprise for her. He had never though that he would feel good about helping someone else, not that he'd ever had the practice. The only other people he knew outside of the manor staff and Serena were few in number and he didn't even like them very much.

"Oh my God, Darien, this is absolutely incredible," Serena breathed as she took in her surroundings. "I've never seen so many books."

"I know," Darien replied as he looked around at the walls of floor to ceiling bookcases. "It's my favorite room in the house and I'm still baffled by the sheer number of books my family's managed to collect."

"You like to read?" Serena asked, joy in her eyes as she turned her gaze to him.

"My parents would let me come in here to pick a book for them to read to me before bed. If you look closely you'll see the child appropriate books are on the lower shelves. Of course, by my fifth birthday I had finally gotten the hang of the ladders, but no one ever moved things around. When my parents died, I never stopped coming in here to pick books. At first Luna read to me, but after I learned how, I would read to myself. After a while, it stopped being a bedtime thing. Now I read during most of my free time," he explained as he resisted the urge to turn to the safety of his books, to ignore Serena as he told her his sob story.

"I was wondering what you did in your spare time," Serena replied with a joking smile as she moved passed Darien and approached the shelves.

"Be careful, okay?" he blurted out before he could stop himself. These books, aside from a few pictures shoved into a shoebox and a few other belongings, were what he had left of his parents.

"I will be," she ensured as she turned to face him, her voice earnest and kind. He closed his eyes in relief once she turned around to examine the books once again. For some reason he really did trust her and when she said she would treat his books properly, he believed her.

* * *

The part she couldn't understand was that he seemed to trust her. Well, that and his flip-flopping from mean to nice to insecure. Weren't women supposed to be the fickle ones? Of course, he did warn her and she did ignore it. That had been a gut reaction but usually her gut was right, so she would just have to believe in her instincts, just as she always did.

But why did he trust her? He had no reason to. She had never done anything to prove her worth. Those were enough reasons for a normal person to be wary, not to mention someone who had as many issues as Darien did. The question was so close to escaping her mouth that she just had to bite down hard on her lower lip and not say anything until her mind got the best of her.

"I'm sorry I'm so crazy," Darien muttered after what felt like hours of unbearable silence.

"Crazy?" Serena squeaked as she turned to face him, surprise on her face. She hadn't been expecting him to say anything, especially not that. It was almost as if, in the moment, he had stopped being so wrong about her reactions and could read her mind.

"I know I'm not an easy person to deal with, no matter what mood I'm in," he pressed on, "but for some reason, I keep wanting to try for you. It's almost like something in me wants you to know all of this. Like right now. I would never tell anyone this, nor have I ever come clean to anyone about the reason I spend so much time in here, even though they all already know, but there's something about you that won't let me hide."

"Hide what?" Serena asked as she pushed the book she was holding back into its place and walked over to Darien.

"I don't know," he replied. "I don't understand any of this. Before now it was all jumbled up inside and I couldn't actually bring myself to think about it because I thought that I would never talk to anyone about any of it. God, listen to me, I sound like a teenage girl. I don't know what the hell is wrong with me."

"Sometimes when you find someone you feel comfortable talking to, you shouldn't question it, you should embrace it," she offered, hoping it would help him. He sounded so lost. It reminded Serena of her little brother the night before his first day of high school. Of course, he would never, ever admit to the break down, but it happened and she would hold it over him forever.

"But you're leaving," he whispered, his voice so low that she almost didn't hear him.

"Oh Darien, I'm not leaving forever," Serena said softly as compassion filled her voice. "Just because I go home doesn't mean I won't come back. I like it here. I like you. I also like Mina, Andrew, Raye and Luna. Why wouldn't I come back? Besides, you have a killer library and I love to read," she teased, trying to lighten the situation as she set a comforting hand on his back.

"I'm sorry I was such a beast before towards you and your friend," he apologized.

"Y'know what? I'm not," she shrugged. She could see his surprise written all over his face and in his navy blue eyes. "If you hadn't been mean to Molly, I wouldn't be here right now. Of course, you're going to have to apologize," Serena said, her eyebrows raised expectantly, "but I really do believe that everything happens for a reason."

"So why are you here?" Darien asked in confusion as he tried to piece everything together.

"To turn you back into the prince everyone in this house knows you can be," Serena said simply, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

* * *

"Darien Shields. I know that name," Diamond muttered to himself as he eyed the redhead sitting at his table. She was talking animatedly to his brother, paying no attention to him, which was odd. Usually she fawned over him just like the rest. It was flattering and maybe if she weren't Serena's best friend, he would sleep with her, but anything mean he did to her would get back to the object of his affections and that wouldn't bode well.

But turning back to his original line of thought, he just couldn't shake the feeling that he knew this Darien Shields. He would just have to figure out how. Of course, either way he would ask Molly for directions to the house she had stumbled upon and would pick Serena up as soon as the storm was over. He would be her knight in shining armor and she would fall into his arms, thankful to be away from the terrible man the freckled girl had described.

With that thought in his mind, Diamond smiled cheerfully as he took a swig of his beer before tuning back into the dreadfully droll conversation his brother was having with the unwanted female. It would all be over soon and he would win. His plan was genius and it would work.

* * *

**A/N: I really worry about Serena and Darien sometimes.**

**So I didn't give this one my second read over like I usually do. Tonight was a little crazy, so you'll have to forgive me if there are mistakes in grammar or whatnot. I don't think I ever said this, but if you see something of that nature, let me know. I'd like to fix it. Anyway, I would like to, again, thank the readers, especially those who chose to review. It means a lot to me. **

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby  
**


	10. Come Together

**Disclaimer-****Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is Come Together by The Beatles.  
**

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* * *

Chapter 10:**

Was that what she really thought she was here for? Did she really think she could make him less of a monster? It was a lofty goal, one he wished her much luck with. As anyone in the house, including himself, would tell her, he was quite the piece of work. But as much as he thought her aspiration was ridiculous, he could help but hope she succeeded. He wanted to be a better person, whether it was for her or his family, he wasn't sure, but he just didn't know how. Maybe she did.

"What time is it?" she asked. They had both gone back to browsing the stacks, Darien high up on one of the ladders, skimming titles he hadn't seen in a while as Serena stayed on the ground, her eyes curiously reading the spines of well-read fairytales.

"Um, close to one, I think," Darien yawned before picking a dusty book off the shelf and climbing down the ladder.

"I've never read this one before," Serena replied, changing the topic of conversation as she turned to her companion and showed him the book she picked.

"It was my mom's. She told me it belonged her great grandmother. It's my favorite," he said as he took the book she was holding and handed her his pick. "I forgot where I put it."

"Let's read it," she shrugged as she walked over to one of the loveseats in the library and sat down, setting Darien's book on a nearby coffee table along the way.

"Read it?" Darien asked as he followed her to the couch.

"Yes, well, it is a book, what else would we do with it?" she asked teasingly.

"Shut up," he grumbled as he sat down next to her only to have the book plucked from his relaxed grip. "Hey, that's mine."

"No pouting," Serena warned as the disgruntled look that was forming on his face disappeared before she could turn to face him. She read him way too well for someone who had just met him earlier that day. It was unsettling. "Who's going to read this, me or you?"

"You," he replied wearily as he rubbed his eyes and leaned back against the couch, too tired to care. Beside that, over the course of the last hour he had come to realize that he liked the sound of her voice.

It was there, listening to Serena's soothing voice read his favorite book from his childhood, that Darien fell asleep.

* * *

Serena first realized he was sleeping when she heard him mumble something she couldn't quite make out. In confusion, she shifted her torso to find that while she was entranced with the story, he had clearly passed out a dozen pages earlier.

"Oh well," she shrugged as she curled up on the couch and continued reading the story, this time to herself.

Almost an hour later, Serena set the book aside. There were still many stories to read, but she couldn't quite keep her focus. She was too busy thinking about the man sleeping next to her. As much as she knew from minute one that she should keep her distance, she couldn't. Every time he told her a story about his parents or had a vulnerable moment, she couldn't help but feel for him and slowly gravitate closer to him.

"You're a confusing man, Darien Shields," Serena muttered as she glanced over at the man who shared a couch with her. "Which makes me like you even more." She shook her head at the thought and reached for the book again. This time she pulled her legs up onto the couch and set the tome on her lap, her body leaning towards Darien ever so slightly. It was only a matter of time before she fell asleep, just as the man next to her had.

* * *

"Where the hell is Darien?" Mina asked as she walked into the kitchen, an empty plate in her hand.

"Good morning to you too, Mina," Lita greeted, taking the plate from her friend and dropping it into the sink as she spoke. "Where did this come from?"

"Outside of Darien's room. If that's not weird enough, his room is empty and so is Serena's," Mina pressed on as Andrew kissed her cheek as a morning greeting, no matter how bleak the morning was.

"You don't think he killed her, do you?" Lita asked. "I mean, he clearly lost it last night, since all the other dishes they used last night are on the drying rack."

"Maybe Serena washed them?" Andrew suggested trying to make heads or tails of the situation.

"So he forced her to wash the dishes, killed her and ran away?" Mina asked thoughtfully as the idea played out in her head.

"I'm going to check the library," the blond haired man said as he shook his head at the two females in front of him. Sometimes they came up with the craziest theories.

"I'll come with!" Mina exclaimed as she hurried after him. The pair walked in silence, both eager to find their employer and figure out what had happened the night before. They knew it was dangerous for Darien to be left alone with a stranger and, even though they knew he would never physically hurt her, they worried that they would find Serena crying in a corner as their friend verbally abused her.

"You think he'll be here?" the tall girl asked softly as they approached the library.

"If he's not in his wing and he hasn't made a fuss in the kitchen yet this morning, I have to assume he's here," Andrew said as he nodded at the doors in front of them. He had to be there. If he wasn't, then Darien was missing and that wasn't something he was prepared to deal with.

"Well let's see," Mina shrugged as she pushed the big doors open to find the last thing either of them expected.

"Oh my God," Andrew mumbled, his eyes widening as he realized the position his two friends were in.

"Oh my God," Mina echoed, although she was quite a bit more excited. "Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God! He's-she's-they're… Andrew!" she squealed as she grabbed onto her boyfriend's arm while jumping up and down.

"I know, Mina, I know. I see them but keep it down," Andrew whispered as he surveyed the scene in front of him. Not only were they sleeping on the same couch, but Darien was sprawled out of the couch with Serena lying on top of him, her arms wrapped around his waist while his were protectively covering her petite shoulders.

"Should we wake them up?" Mina hissed, her joy still present. Andrew felt it too.

"No, no, let them sleep. Serena seemed really tired last night. Besides, when was the last time Darien looked so peaceful?" Andrew asked, pondering the question he had just asked.

"I think I was too young to remember," Mina said, voicing the answer neither wanted to admit to.

"Let's go," Andrew said, stating the obvious course of action. Nothing was going to wake the pair before they were ready, not unless they wanted to die a painful death at the hands of a very unhappy blond couple.

"I'll ask Lita to leave them food," Mina suggested brightly as they walked back down the hall.

"And I'll keep Diana and Raye out of the area," Andrew added, glad to be able to contribute to the efforts.

"Raye gonna be so mad," Mina gushed, a dreamy look washing over her face. Andrew could only begin to imagine what crazy scenarios she was concocting in that adorable head of hers.

"She usually is," Andrew muttered to himself, a sigh escaping his mouth as he draped an arm around Mina's shoulders. He was less than excited to mediate a fight between Raye and his girlfriend, but he had volunteered himself and now it was too late.

* * *

Darien yawned widely as his body began to wake up, his eyes still closed as he thought about the blissful night's sleep he had finally managed to wrestle away from the sandman. The only odd thing about the situation was the weight he felt pressing down on his chest.

"What?" he mumbled as his midnight blue orbs opened hesitantly to the dim lighting of the room. Without shifting his head, he glanced down to find a blond head resting on his chest. "Serena," Darien breathed as the events of the night before came rushing back to him, the relief pumping through his veins as he realized she was still there. He didn't really enjoy the fact that he had become so dependent on someone else in such an incredibly short amount of time, but it was too late to deny it. Well, at least out loud he would, but inwardly there was no way.

"Where am I?" a soft, disoriented voice asked as her small head lifted off his chest, the lack of weight and warmth on his chest sending an irrational twinge of loss pulsing through him. "Oh. Now I remember," Serena said matter-of-factly as she lifted her head and laid eyes on Darien. "Hey, how'd you sleep?"

"Really well, actually, how about you?" he asked as he noticed his arm was still draped around Serena. It almost made up for the fact that he would probably never be this close to her ever again.

"It was nice," she replied with a small smile. "I'm still tired though. Can we go back to sleep?" He would have acquiesced to her request gladly if not for the loud gurgling noise coming from the stomach of the petite woman who was still lying on top of him.

"It sounds like you're hungry, so maybe we should find some food instead," Darien replied reluctantly. Just because she was hungry-not to mention his own desire for food-didn't mean he had to be happy about getting up.

"Mmm," she hummed thoughtfully as she bit down on her lower lip, an action that made him want to kiss her, an urge he had never felt before in his entire life. "Okay, but we have to finish this book before I leave," Serena warned, her blue eyes serious as she stared him down.

"Bring it with. Just don't get any food on it, alright?" Darien requested. He was joking but at the same time, he wasn't. From the look on her face, he was pretty sure she understood.

"I won't if you don't," Serena shrugged as she pushed herself off of Darien and onto her feet, grabbing the book as she went.

"Sure, sure," he replied as he got up, his whole body missing the feel of her against him. A feeling he loathed for more than one reason.

"Point me in the right direction, oh wise one," she requested as they stepped out into the hallway.

"Sure thing, my dear village idiot," he teased as he offered his arm to Serena, laughter in his voice, hoping his sneaky way of regaining physical contact with the girl walking next to him would work.

"Hey!" Serena complained as she slapped Darien's arm and then slipped the same hand she had used to attempt to hurt him into the crook of his proffered arm, much to his delight. "I'm not stupid, thank you very much."

"No, but it seemed appropriate," Darien shrugged honestly, their playful banter slipping into comfortable conversation. "The truth is, I don't know very much about you."

"Well what would you like to know?" Serena asked curiously.

"Your favorite color, your favorite food, your favorite book, what you do in your spare time, who your best friends are, where you hang out, your fears, your dreams, what your happy place is like," Darien said, doling out the different basic facts that he knew about the people he was close to.

"Wow, that's a lot of things you'd like to know about one person," she replied. It was, but he really did want to know. "Well, my favorite color is pink, my favorite food is well, most anything, as Andrew will tell you. I'm kind of a human garbage disposal. But I think my favorite is pasta. I don't really have a favorite book. I just like to read. I'll read a book I like a dozen times, which is good, because the library in town that I go to is kind of small. I know it seems weird that I don't go to a bigger one, but one of my best friends, Ami, works there. My other best friend, Molly, the girl from last night, Ami and I all came to live here for college. Well, Molly doesn't go to college, she's working on her jewelry, but she lives with me while Ami lives closer to school and the library."

For the rest of the short walk, Darien listened to Serena detail her life to him. She told stories that explained the main facets of her personality, discussed her likes and dislikes, opened up to him and let him into her life. How she managed to get in that much information into ten minutes, well, she talked really fast.

"You're really working up that appetite, aren't you?" he teased as they reached the kitchen, the clattering of pots and pans echoing through the hallway, signifying that Lita was probably up to no good.

"It's what I do best," Serena shrugged as they entered the room, their arms detangling unconsciously as they went.

"Good morning Lita, Luna, Artemis, Diana," Darien greeted as he took stock of who from his staff was loitering in the kitchen. "I don't think all of you have met our guest. This is Serena Tsukino."

"Hey, I'm Lita, it's nice to meet you," the tall, brunette who was stirring something on the stove said, taking her eyes off of her concoction long enough to get an eyeful of the blond.

"I'm Luna, but we met last night, however informally," the dark haired woman said as she reached forward to shake Serena's hand.

"I'm Artemis, Luna's husband, and this is Diana, our daughter," Artemis said primly as he reached forward with his free arm and copied his wife's greetings.

"Hi! I'm Diana," she chirped needlessly from her father's arms, causing Darien to smile, however slightly. "Are you Uncle Darien's new friend? Uncle Andrew and Aunt Mina were talking about you sleeping with him in the library this morning. I don't like the library. It's really big and really scary. Mama always goes to pick out my bedtime story so I don't run into the monsters that hide between the books. They bite off your fingers if you get too close."

"That's enough Diana," Artemis said kindly, an insistent tone in his voice as everyone in the room had the decency to look shocked from the mouthful the little girl had just said. Well, everyone but Serena.

"The library's not so bad, Diana. Besides, all you need to do is learn how to scare off those monsters and they'll never come near you again," Serena informed kindly. Darien turned to the blond, his surprise magnified due to the manner in which she had handled the situation. He hadn't expected that.

"Can you teach me?" Diana asked excitedly as she wriggled herself out of her father's arms and ran over to Serena, her eyes wide with hope and trust.

"Of course I can, but first I think your Uncle Darien and I need to get some breakfast," Serena said as she knelt down to the little girl's level.

"Serena's right, Diana," Luna informed. "Besides, you have some toys to put away sweetheart."

"Do I have to Mama?" Diana whined with a pout on her face as Serena pulled herself back up to standing position with very little grace. "I want to play with Serena!"

"Diana, you heard your mother," Artemis said sternly as he picked up the little girl and carried her squirming body out of the room, Luna following her small family closely.

"But Papa!" Diana complained, her voice fading as they exited the room and made their way down the hallway.

"You should know that Mina and Andrew saw you two sleeping in the library," Lita said bluntly, stating the obvious as she set two plates full of breakfast foods on the kitchen counter for the pair.

"And now the whole house knows," Darien groaned as sat down heavily on his stool. He hated when people knew his business before he had a chance to tell them.

"Obviously," Lita shrugged as she went back to the stove to pull a batch of cookies out before they burned. "These are for dinner, no snacking," she warned without turning around as she slid the cookies onto the cooling rack.

"Hey, what's going on with the storm outside? I don't hear anything," Serena asked curiously as she sat down next to Darien for breakfast.

"The rain stopped sometime last night and then it started to snow a few hours ago, just enough time to freeze a nice layer of ice on the ground for the snow to stick to. There's about three inches of snow on the ground and it's like a blizzard out there," Lita replied informatively as Darien cheered inwardly. Ok, so maybe it seemed a little like Serena was his prisoner, but he was just happy she didn't have a choice as to whether she could stay or go. God knows she would leave if she had the chance.

"Huh, well, it's not like I was going to rush out of here or anything," Serena shrugged, defying every last assumption Darien had made in the last thirty seconds, much to his complete and utter disbelief.

"Don't you want to go home?" he asked incredulously, not believing his ears.

"Home will always be there for me to go back to. I'm sure Molly's keeping it nice and warm. This book, on the other hand, is not at home. And neither is this delicious food or the excellent company I've found myself in. Besides, I promised Diana I would teacher her how to get rid of those monsters," the blond assured as she polished off her breakfast and picked up the book.

"That must be a record," Lita mumbled as she took Serena's plate and began walking to the sink. "You don't want anymore, do you?" the brunette checked.

"No, I'm okay until the next meal, I suppose. That was amazing, thank you," Serena laughed lightly as she eyed Darien, the excitement on her face silently urging him to hurry up. He couldn't help but comply. He still couldn't shake the assumption that she would bolt out of there the minute it was safe and he wasn't going to waste a single moment of their time together.

"Anytime," Lita replied as Serena and Darien got to their feet, picked up their book and left the kitchen. He didn't know what was going to happen next and in that moment he decided he would really stop trying to guess. It wasn't worth the effort, especially since he knew he was probably going to be wrong anyway.

* * *

**A/N: I wish all men would make such a decision... I hate when guys assume they know me...**

**Anyway, sorry this one took me so long. I've been incredibly busy/tired/lazy/blocked. I know that this is mostly filler, but I though the Darien/Serena moments would be enjoyed. Once again, I adore, enjoy and cherish every since review and hit I get for this story, so thank you to all for contributing to that and please keep it up!**

**Next chapter has more Diamond! Get ready for the crazy ego. I can't wait to write it, even though it probably won't be done until late next week. I'm sorry about that in advance... if you want more updates on my writing, I rework my profile more than I add to my stories so if you're lucky, you'll find something useful there.  
**

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby  
**


	11. I'm About To Come Alive

**Disclaimer-****Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is I'm About to Come Alive by Train.  
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* * *

Chapter 11:**

Diamond paced furiously. His plan was not unfolding the way he wanted. Yes, the rain had stopped long enough for everyone in the diner to scurry back to their warm homes, but by the time the light haired man had gathered everything he would need to drive out and get the woman of his affections, the snow had started and the roads were entirely too icy to be safe to drive on.

"Goddamn this fucking weather!" Diamond swore under his breath as he clenched and unclenched his fists in anger, his fingernails leaving crescent moon shapes indented in his palm.

"Diamond, please stop overreacting," Sapphire insisted from where he was sitting on the couch. The younger man had been watching his brother pace for what seemed like hours, even though it was only five minutes at most. "You'll get her once the snow stops. Everything will work out."

"I need to get her now!" Diamond shouted, still incensed that he didn't have Serena in his arms at that moment. He wanted, no needed, for the blond to be pressed up against him, her sweet voice whispering into his ear, telling him how much she loved him and how grateful she was to have him in her life. And she would, just as soon as he was able to rescue her from that barbarian, Darien Shields.

"Who the hell is this guy anyway? I swear I've heard the name before, I just can't place it," Diamond quizzed as he stopped moving and turned to stare his brother down.

"What's his name? I wasn't really listening before, just nodding along," Sapphire yawned. The hour was late and Diamond understood why the younger man was getting tired, no matter how agitated it made him feel.

"Darien Shields," he ground out. The name wouldn't leave him alone. It plagued his every thought, nagging at him. He knew he knew the man who had his Serena locked up in some mansion, the lucky bastard, but he didn't know how.

"Shields," Sapphire muttered thoughtfully, his eyes going wide as he realized why the name was familiar, a look Diamond was more than happy to see. "Alexander Shields was father's business partner nearly two decades ago. Shields split from father when he found out that daddy dearest wasn't the cleanest of businessmen. Of course, father wasn't pleased, but it didn't matter. Only weeks later, Alexander and his wife, Caroline, lost control of their car and went skidding off a cliff, into the ocean. Darien's their only child. We used to play with him when father and Shields Senior were doing business.

"I remember we went over there for the funeral, but Darien refused to see us. We visited a few times after that because father felt bad about the whole situation, but the boy never would come out of his room. A few months later, that truck hit father and we never went over there again. I always did wonder what happened to that boy," he finished, his thoughts presumably on the past that he, his brother and Darien had shared. His brother's thoughts, on the other hand, were focused on something else entirely.

Diamond was thinking about his opponent. Now he remembered the dark haired boy who used to play cards with him when they were nothing but children. Of course, Darien must have grown up, just as he had. He was probably tall and broad in order to intimidate anyone, which would make things a little difficult for him in a fight, but he would win of course. No one could beat him in a fight, that much he was sure of, not even the beast of a man Molly had described earlier that night.

"Diamond, maybe you should get some sleep. I'll keep watch and let you know when it's safe to go outside and get Serena," Sapphire offered, his tone serious.

"Yes, perhaps that'd be best. I'd hate for Serena to see me when I'm not at my best," Diamond muttered to himself as he paced his way into his bedroom, the door slamming loudly behind him.

"Dear lord, he's a moron," Sapphire muttered to himself as he got off the couch and moved to the window to watch the snow fall. He had seen the redhead home while Diamond had returned to their not-so-humble abode to prepare for his journey. Not that it was much of a journey. While the younger man remembered the friendly boy who had apparently turned out to be a sullen adult, he also remembered the people who lived with him. They would never let Shields harm Serena.

No, Diamond would prance in there and make a right fool of himself, just as he usually did, and Sapphire would let him. As the younger brother, he was automatically less talented, less intelligent and less important. At least that was the older man's assumption. But the truth was truly something else.

If Diamond could see beyond his egotistical, self-centered personality, he would know just what his little brother had to offer. He would know that Sapphire was wise beyond his years, and that if asked, he could help woo Serena in a matter of minutes. He would also know that going over to the Shields manor would only get him into more trouble than he could handle. The lonely man pent up in that house, surrounded by people who loved him would be more than capable of handling a stupid, vain, pretty boy. They would chew him up and spit him out, even if the petite blond had any interest him, which the dark haired man greatly doubted she ever would.

"Stupid, naïve brother," Sapphire lamented as he turned from the window and went to his room. A nap would wash away the weariness of the night before quite nicely. He would just have to wake up before Diamond and rouse his brother, pretending that the snow had finished minutes before even though that probably wouldn't be true. It's not like his brother would know the difference.

* * *

"I can't believe you!" Darien exclaimed in disbelief as Serena put the book back on the shelf, where it belonged.

"What?" she asked incredulously. "I didn't like that last story, that's all. It's not very… fairytale-like, if you will."

"Why? Because the prince turned out to be a jerk and the princess cried herself to sleep?" Darien asked. It was his turn to look at his companion in disbelief. That had always been his favorite story, especially after his parents died. It was the only story in the entire book that portrayed life in a realistic manner. It was the only one that wasn't full of lies.

"If I wanted to read about real life relationships, I'd pick up one of those trashy gossip magazines. I read fairytales to lie to myself. They're fiction. They shouldn't have to be real," Serena complained as she returned to the couch and sat down opposite Darien, her legs tucked underneath her like a pretzel.

"I suppose, but it's still nice to have a little real life thrown in with the make believe. It keeps you grounded," he replied. He never could stomach pure, undiluted fantasy.

"When was the last time you acted younger than you actually are?" Serena asked curiously and seemingly out of nowhere, much to his bewilderment.

"I don't know. I don't even remember the last time I acted my age. I had to grow up fast after my parents died," Darien muttered softly and honestly.

"Well come on then," she insisted as she got to her feet and held out a hand for him to take. He eyed the proffered appendage hesitantly. What was she getting at?

"Where are we going?" he asked, verbalizing the unasked question.

"Darien let me tell you a story. It's true, and there's tons of reality in it, so I think you might like it," Serena smirked, her hand still outstretched, waiting for his. "Once upon a time there was a very happy little boy. This little boy had everything he could ever want until one day his parents got into an accident and didn't come home. After that, the little boy locked himself up in a tower and traded his smiles and laughter for frowns and disapproving grunts.

"One day, a silly, carefree maiden happened to come by with the key to the tower. She held out her hand to the boy, who was not much of a boy anymore, and offered him a brief relapse into the childhood he never let himself have. Now the bitter man was mean to the maiden at first. He refused her offer callously, but when she asked again, for she was never one to take no for an answer, he paused. For some reason he trusted her. For some reason his heart told him to run free even though his head kept telling him that the tower was safe and the maiden wasn't."

"What's the ending?" Darien asked breathlessly, his heart pounding in his throat as he waited to hear what the man would tell the maiden. He understood the metaphor, but he still couldn't predict what the answer would be. Would he leave the tower with her? Would he take her hand?

"I never had a chance to hear the end of that particular tale, but I'm pretty sure you know it. I'm pretty sure you can tell me the ending," she pressed, her voice soft and soothing, just as it had been the night before.

"I don't know," he mumbled sadly as he turned his face downward to look at his hands, if only to get away from the sight of her gentle face.

"It only takes one word, Darien. The only thing keeping the man locked up there is his own will. He can be free if he wants to be, it just takes that one first step and I promise I'll hold your hand the whole way through," Serena coaxed as story melded with reality. He could hear how much she wanted it and he also knew just how much he wanted it too.

"Okay," he said suddenly, his voice clear and strong as he straightened up and locked eyes with Serena, blue meeting blue as trust, care and understanding passed between them.

"Okay," she echoed proudly as Darien took her hand and allowed her to lead him out of the room.

"So where are we going?" Darien asked, returning to his original question.

Serena laughed. "You'll see."

* * *

**A/N: Mystery loves company... or is it misery? Well, enough misery for Darien, time for something else.**

**So once again, I'd like to thank my reviewers and readers. I love hearing from you guys, so please please please keep leaving me those notes, whether positive or negative. If nothing else, reward my quick update! I set aside my social life tonight to get this chapter done well before I thought I would. Besides, I think this one's pretty interesting, especially Serena's fairytale and Sapphire's inner rebellion.  
**

**Anyway, the next bit should be out soon, maybe this weekend. It's going to get the ball rolling quite a bit, so get ready for something a little more fast paced! As usually, let me know if you see a technical error or a missing word (I'd love to fix it) and remember to check my profile for updates, just in case!  
**

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby  
**


	12. Rise and Shine

**Disclaimer-****Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is Rise and Shine by Guster.

* * *

****Chapter 12:**

When Serena told him she was going to show him what it would be like to act like a kid again, she didn't really have a plan. All she knew was that she was going to have to find Raye and get a change of clothing. A mini skirt wasn't exactly conducive to play time.

"Where are we going?" Darien begged as they walked down the hall. Serena hated when people had to beg her for something. She was such a sucker for a good pout and it seemed that her new friend had mastered the look.

"To find me pants," Serena replied, giving him the only answer she had at the moment. "I can't do anything worthwhile without pants."

"I know where Raye keeps everything. We'll get you something and then you're going to tell me what we're doing. I don't like surprises," he sulked as they walked. He was going to be the death of her. Not that she minded much. Death by Darien Shields didn't seem like such a terrible way to go at all.

"No, really?" the blond began sarcastically, annoyed at herself more than anything else. It was one thing for her heart to feel an attraction to Darien, which it undeniably did, but it was an entirely separate thing for her head to go along with it. "Listen, don't worry. I promise you, it'll be fun. If it's not, you'll tell me, and we'll do something else. No big deal."

"That simple?" he asked, disbelief audible in his voice. Did he really think she was going to force him to do something he didn't want to do? What kind of monster did he think she was?

"That simple," she confirmed, hiding her equally incredulous tone as Darien pulled her over to an inconspicuous looking door and pushed it open.

"Have fun finding your pants," he said, just a hint of a smirk tainting his voice as her eyes widened in shock at the sight before her. There were more shelves and racks in the one room than there were in the biggest clothing store in town.

"Wow," Serena muttered as she pulled away from her companion and walked into the room. At first she hesitantly approached the different fabrics, almost afraid that they would come alive and bite her, but after a moment of adjustment, she got down to business. "You might want to find something more comfortable. And warmer. If the snow lets up, you better believe we're going outside. Snow isn't just something pretty to look at." It was a phrase she had grown up with, one her grandmother had instilled in her. And no matter how much Ami usually wanted to stay inside and study or Molly wanted to read the trashy magazines that had piled up in her mailbox, they would go out.

"I don't like winter, to be honest," Darien replied as he joined Serena in her search for proper winter clothing.

"Well neither do I," Serena admitted sheepishly as she looked up from her task to find that Darien had managed to maneuver his way to the other side of the room without her realizing it. "I like spring best, but I like to make the best of all the seasons. Just because it's not my favorite time of year doesn't mean I can't have fun outside. Snow can be a lot of fun."

"Snow is cold and useless. It kills everything and makes getting around that much harder," he shot back, his grumpy nature returning, something Serena had been waiting on.

"Okay, maybe snow does cause a lot of trouble, but on those mornings when you wake up to two feet of snow on the ground, knowing you won't have to go to school that day, don't you feel just a little bit of appreciation for the cold, white stuff on the ground?" Serena asked dreamily as she thought back to the many cold days she, Ami and Molly had spent rolling around in the snow back home.

"No," Darien replied dully. "I've never had a snow day. I was home schooled."

"No snow days!" she exclaimed, her eyes bulging slightly for not the first time in the last ten minutes. "Well that's why you don't like snow! You need a snow day to appreciate it." It was a cardinal sin in Serena's mind to never experience a snow day.

"If you say so," he shrugged noncommittally.

"Trust me. We'll make this perfect," Serena gushed as the wheels in her head began turning. She hadn't had this particular plan in mind when she had mentioned the snow day plot, but now that the idea had dawned on her, she wasn't going to turn away from it.

"What does that mean?" Darien asked curiously, the lack of enthusiasm painfully obvious to Serena, even though she ignored it.

"You'll see," she winked as she grabbed the last of the clothing either she or Darien would need. "Now, let's go to your room and set up the grand plan."

"I don't like this already," he mumbled as he led Serena out of the room and back to his. She smiled as she followed him. She might not be the most perceptive woman in the world, but she could tell that she was worming her way into his life. She didn't know that was what she wanted when she walked into the manor the night before, but now that she was here it was all she could see herself wanting for quite some time.

* * *

"This is stupid," Darien mumbled as he rolled over onto his side, his arm hanging off his king-sized bed needlessly. It was nice to lie in his unmade bed, considering he had spent the night sitting up right on a couch, and it was even nicer to be wearing fresh, clean pajamas instead of the pants and turtleneck he had been wearing for over 24 hours, but this was ridiculous. He couldn't believe he had been roped into this.

And what was this? He wasn't even sure. All he knew was that, because he had opened his big fat mouth about snow days, Serena had decided to put on a show, one that included his participation. She had told him to get into bed and wait there until she came to get him. She said that he should go to sleep if he was tired or got impatient, it would only enhance the greatness of the moment.

It was just as he was dozing off that he head his door creak open. He didn't even bother to force his eyes open as he listened to Serena's small, bare, feet tiptoe across the carpet, over to his bed. He could guess what was going to happen next.

"Rise and shine, Darien, there's snow _everywhere_! There's no way we'll have school today, so wake up!" he heard Serena exclaim as she clambered up onto the bed and bounced up and down, shaking him as well as the entire mattress. "Come on, come on wake up Darien! No worries today, only playtime." The joy and excitement was over-present in her voice, yet the sentiment was sincere. She sounded more than pleased to spend a day with him, even if the snow day was just an act.

"Go away," Darien insisted as he pulled the covers tighter over her shoulder. If they were going to act like children, then they were going to act like children.

"Darien!" Serena whined as she shuffled her away over to his side of the bed on her knees. Her intention was probably to tickle him or shake him until he had no choice but to get up, but instead she lost her balance in a bout of clumsiness and fell on top of him.

"Oof!" she grunted as he stomach made contact with his side, her long blond hair falling over her shoulder so that it draped over his outstretched arm like a sun-kissed curtain.

"See what snow days will do to you?" he asked softly as he turned onto his back, Serena's weight seemingly insignificant.

"It's still fun," she shot back as she raised an eyebrow at him, the smile still on her face. "Come on Darien, get up! The snow waits for no one!"

"Okay, okay, but you know there's still a blizzard out there," he warned.

"Nuh-uh!" Serena retorted as she jumped up and shimmied off the bed with very little grace before skipping over to the window and throwing open the curtains.

"Wow," Darien gasped as he made his way to the window to get a better glimpse of his backyard. An involuntary shudder from the cold ran through him as he pressed his hand to the glass panes, but he didn't notice it. All he could look at was the untouched layer of snow on the ground and the light flakes that fell from the sky.

"See, no more blizzard," Serena crowed joyfully as she turned away from the window. "Get dressed, Dare, we're going out."

"If you says so," Darien replied as he turned around just in time to see her duck into his closet, probably to slip on the rest of her layers while he got dressed. He didn't know how, but she had done it. She had made him see possibilities snow had to offer.

* * *

Serena and Darien spent the next four hours outside in the snow with vary members of the Shields household. While Diana, Luna and Artemis were outside the five made snow angels and built little snowmen, much to the delight of Diana. Once they had gone inside and Andrew, Mina, Lita and Raye had taken their place, an all out snowball war ensued, boys against girls with the girls as the obvious victors. And then finally, when the other four had to go inside to see to their work, it was just Serena and Darien, left alone again, a situation that seemed to suit them both quite nicely.

"I like this snow man better than the others," Serena said critically as she adjusted the hat on the snowman. The previous snow sculptures had been destroyed, a casualty of war.

"He's taller than the rest, I'd say," Darien added, nodding in agreement.

"And he's fat, like a snowman should be," Serena continued. "Really, it's just so much better this time around."

"Would you like to make some more snow angels?" he asked as he turned from their creation, satisfied with their work.

"Uh, duh," Serena replied. Without another word, the blond dropped back into the snow and worked her arms and legs up and down, a smile on her face as she enjoyed the winter wonderland around her.

"You were right," Darien said as he sat down cross-legged beside her.

"About what, pray tell?" she asked curiously as she shifted her gaze from the clouds to her companion.

"This was fun," he admitted.

"Oh, I knew that, silly, you didn't need to tell me." Her voice was teasing and his face made it apparent that he didn't mind.

"Can I show you something?" Darien asked as Serena stopped moving around so much, her angel clearly defined in the white fluffy snow beneath her.

"Sure," she shrugged. With that, Darien got to his feet and pulled Serena up after him so she wouldn't destroy her creation.

"This is my greenhouse," Darien said as he led her to a hidden section of the backyard.

"Oh wow, it's amazing," Serena said, her voice full of awe as she took in the large building made of glass. "What do you grow in there?"

"I breed roses all year round," he explained as he walked over to the greenhouse, Serena trailing behind him curiously.

"Oh my God, it's amazing in here," she mumbled as she unzipped her jacket due to the heat of the room and took a good look around. The flowers seemed to come in every color imaginable, all in different states of bloom and size. "I've never seen anything like it."

"Thank you," Darien replied modestly. "Do you like roses?"

"I love them. The red ones are my favorite," she said as she turned to him, her eyes still full of excitement as her senses registered everything in front of her.

"I thought you liked pink best?" he asked as they moved down the rows together. As he examined the flowers to make sure they were healthy, she was gently touching their full petals, not seeing a single flaw in any of them.

"Yes, I do, but I like red roses better. To me, when you give someone a rose, it's a declaration of love and red is the color of love. I don't know, that probably sounded really silly, but it makes sense to me," Serena shrugged.

"Well, unfortunately my red roses haven't been faring very well at all this season. I'm not sure what went wrong exactly," Darien frowned as they walked towards the patch in question. It was there that they were faced with the smallest roses in the greenhouse. Many were clearly far behind in their growth and, unlike the many other flowers there, they were few and far between.

"They're still gorgeous," Serena replied, honesty seeping from her voice. "If I were in charge, I probably would have overwatered all of them on day one."

"I guess," Darien shrugged. "I just wish they were up to par. When they're in full bloom they really are the gem of the house in the winter."

"Maybe you just need to give them time. Sometimes it takes a little longer for a flower to come to it's own." From the instant the words left her mouth, it was clear to both of them that she wasn't just talking about the plants.

"I think I can be patient," he said as he stared down the flowers with tears welling up in his eyes that Serena could see but wouldn't comment on.

"I know I will be," she replied as she slipped her hand into his as squeezed it as tightly as she could as a show of support.

* * *

"Sapphire!" Diamond's shriek carried through the apartment, all the way to his brother's room. "Sapphire! How could you let me sleep? You were supposed to wake me up!"

"Oops," Sapphire mumbled as he rolled over in his bed and pulled his pillow over his head. He could hear Diamond bumbling around, pulling on clothing and knocking things over as he tried to get himself together. He did have to go rescue his damsel in distress, after all.

"I can't believe you didn't wake me," Diamond growled angrily as he poked his head into Sapphire's room before making his way back down the hallway to finish getting ready.

"I can't believe you're so stupid," Sapphire yawned, his voice quiet so that his already incensed brother wouldn't hear him. It was only when the front door slammed, signifying Diamond's exit that the dark haired man rolled over and climbed out of bed. He probably had enough time to shower, get dressed, grab something to eat and go out for a nice walk before the light haired man returned, his anger intensified further due to yet another rejection.

"I love my free afternoons."

* * *

**A/N: Me too Sapphire, me too.**

**I'm so sorry it took so long to get this up. Fanfiction's been on the fritz for the last couple of days. Trust me, I was pouting too. But I was so happy when I noticed it went back up an hour ago that I stayed up extra late just to post this! Please reward my diligence with reviews!**

**I'll post again soon, hopefully. I have two ideas for the next chapter and I'll decide tomorrow during class which one I prefer. Thanks for reading!**

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby  
**


	13. Trouble

**Disclaimer-****Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is Trouble by Dave Matthews Band.  
**

* * *

**Chapter 13:**

"Thanks for the ride," Serena said as she turned to face her chauffer, her cell phone clutched in her small hand.

"Anytime you're stuck," Darien replied, "You have my number." She smiled involuntarily at that. He had programmed the number into her phone only minutes earlier. She had taken his phone to do the same only to find about a dozen numbers saved into the phone. It didn't take an idiot to realize that the number exchange was a big deal.

"Expect phone calls at all hours, especially when there's a thunderstorm," she warned, her voice holding a tinge of teasing, but she really did mean it. Somehow she knew that the next time when she woke up in the middle of the night from a nightmare or burnt her finger on the stove while trying to cook something for dinner, she would call him just to hear his voice.

"I can't wait," he told her sincerely, causing her smile to widen.

"I don't now how I'm going to convince Molly to give you a second chance," Serena sighed in annoyance, her smile melting away as she looked over at the small house she shared with her best friend. She almost didn't want to go back. The manor seemed much safer than the building to her right.

"I'll be extra nice," he offered. He was so convincing that she almost believed him.

"Yeah, maybe when hell freezes over," she shot back before shaking her head at her companion.

"I mean it!" he protested. "I'll really try to be better and maybe I'll even apologize." Serena eyed Darien closely. He seemed to be telling the truth, but in the last few hours at her stay in the manor, she had learned all about his teasing, witty sense of humor. He could come off as quite cruel with his harsh words. It seemed that whether you be a stranger or a good friend, you still got the brunt of his verbal abuse, even though the intent was different in the two situations.

"Sure," Serena said, drawing the word out as she spoke to accentuate the already obvious sarcasm.

"I will!" he exclaimed in protest.

"Right now?" she challenge coolly, knowing Darien wasn't about to get out of the car until he got back home.

"I need you to butter her up for me first," Darien said, covering for himself and causing Serena to snort in a most unladylike fashion.

"Okay, I'll do that," Serena replied skeptically. "But you'll need wish me luck. It's going to be quite the feat. Molly was absolutely terrified of you."

"I can be a monster, can't I?" he sighed heavily as his demeanor changed from lighthearted and suave to realistic. "I really am sorry. I didn't mean to upset your friend, I just can't always control my temper."

"I know silly," she told him with a smile, trying to bring back the previous atmosphere. "But I don't mind it. At least if you're acting up I know you're alive." His stoicism was something she had used against him earlier during his merciless attack on her slip-ups.

"Thanks," he said flatly as he narrowed his eyes.

"Oh don't pout. I really don't mind it too much. Knowing how to deal with it really helps," she reprimanded jokingly. "But I should really get inside. Give me a call when you get home so I know you haven't died driving in this."

"Will do," he answered, his eyes sparkling with joy once again. "Oh, and before I forget, this is for you." When he held out the red rose, Serena's eyes widened. To her it was perfect, even though she knew in his critical eyes it was sub par. "It's not the best red rose I've ever grown, but it's the best of out of this year's. You like them so much, so I thought I would you would like it."

"I didn't even see you pick it," Serena muttered in wonder as she took the flower from him and pressed it up against her nose.

"No, you were too busy ogling at the blue roses," Darien teased.

"I've never seen them before!" she protested as she tightened her grip on the rose he had given her, the thorns pricking her hand. "Ouch!" She was never very good at avoiding injury.

"Be careful with that," he cautioned, his voice full of care as he took the rose from her, plucked off the offending growths and tucked the flower behind her ear. "There, try not to cause injury, okay?" He was babying her, just as he had done the night before during the thunderstorm. She enjoyed it.

"Sure," Serena replied sardonically as blood surged into her cheeks, tinting them red and showing off her embarrassment to Darien.

"Good," Darien shot back, his tone satisfied.

"Well, I better go. Thanks again for the ride and the rose!" With that, Serena impulsively leaned over, pressed a quick kiss onto Darien's cheek and slipped out of the car. She didn't turn back to look, but from the lack of reaction during her run from the car to the house, she was pretty sure he was stunned by her actions.

"I can't believe I just did that," she breathed once she was safe inside the house, her back pressed up against the inside of the front door. She had actually kissed him. Even if it had only been on the cheek, the tingly feeling her lips had acquired was more than just a little strange and definitely very new.

"Serena!" Molly shrieked as a redheaded blur slammed into the petite blond, slamming her against the front door and knocking her phone out of her hand.

"Molly… can't… breathe," Serena choked as she gently tried to push her friend back. She had missed her, but not that much.

"Oh my God, Serena, I thought you were dead!" Molly exclaimed as she pulled away and held Serena at arms length as if examining her to make sure all her limbs were intact. In truth, based on the feelings the blond knew the freckled girl had towards Darien, she wouldn't be surprised if that's what she was doing.

"Why?" Serena asked frankly, not even bothering to going to the trouble of consoling Molly.

"Because… well… because!" Molly spluttered. "He was terrible!"

"He's really not so bad, Moll, once you get to know him. He's just got a chip on his shoulder," the blond shrugged as she dropped her bag on the table in the front hall where it belonged and then went about taking off her winter clothing. She was surprised her friend hadn't noticed the rose in her hair yet. If anything, that was the most curious part of the whole situation.

"Not so bad!" Molly protested. "He was horrid! He didn't even give me enough gas to get home! I ran out in front of the arcade and waited out the storm there with Diamond and Sapphire. Thank God the two of them where there. I told them the whole story and Diamond offered to take care of everything! He said hew as going to get you after the storm. He's so ki-" But Serena, cut the redhead off before she could say anything else.

"He didn't though," Serena informed, turning back to the coat rack as she subtly slipped the flower from her hair before Molly could have a chance to question and carefully tucked it into the inner pocket of her winter jacket. She would have to remember to retrieve it later so it wouldn't get crushed. "Diamond never made it to the manor. Darien drove me home."

"That awful man drove you home?" Molly asked, her innocent eyes widening in fear. "Where's Diamond? Oh my God, if something happened to him I'll never forgive myself!"

"Molly, relax," Serena coaxed as she whirled around and followed her panicked and pacing friend into the living room where she was already dialing Diamond's home phone number.

"Sapphire?" Molly asked, her voice infused with worry. "Sapphire, where's Diamond? Serena came home but Diamond didn't bring her!"

Serena didn't hear what Sapphire told Molly. What she did know was that minutes after her friend's last nervous exclamation, the lines on her face evened out and she looked much calmer.

"Thank you, Sapphire, thank you so much!" Molly said, her voice full of relief as she hung up the receiver. "Well, the good news is that Diamond left only a few minutes ago to go get you, so he's fine."

"He's on his way to the manor?" Serena asked, her voice nothing more than a whisper.

"Well, yes, he's going to go get you!" Molly cheered, not realizing the implications of her words.

"Shit!" Serena swore as she ran back to the front hallway, leaving a stunned Molly in the living room. "My phone, my phone, my phone," she muttered frantically as she dug through her bag. "Molly, where in God's name did I put my phone? Oh there it is, thank the Lord!"

Serena dropped to her knees and snatched her phone off the floor. She flipped it open and quickly scrolled through her contacts to find his number. The phone rang at least seven times before Darien's came on the line to inform her that he was unavailable and she should leave her information and he would get back to her as soon as possible.

"Shit!" Serena swore again as she jumped to her feet. "Molly, did you fill up the tank?"

"No," Molly replied, her voice small as she stood under the archway between the living room and the hallway.

"Oh Molly," Serena sighed as she hurried over to her friend and hugged her tightly. "Don't worry. You didn't do anything wrong, but something really bad might happen if I don't catch up with Darien. He's not going to like when Diamond shows up unannounced, on his property. Knowing that idiot he'll probably claim I'm his girlfriend, or worse, fiancée, and that he's there to save me from the beast, or something awful like that. God, Darien will absolutely murder him if I'm not there to clear everything up."

"What are you going to do?" Molly asked as Serena pulled away and turned to grab her winter clothing.

"I'm gonna take my bike and go back there," Serena replied determinedly as she walked to the door.

"Are you crazy? You can bike all the way out there!" Molly exclaimed, sliding between Serena and the door.

"I can and I will. I have to go back there. He needs me!" Serena was getting frustrated with Molly and her interference. She was losing time. Diamond and Darien would be well into an altercation by the time she got there.

With that, Molly stepped away from the door and let Serena pass. "I don't know what happened to you at that place, but you better believe we're talking about it later."

"Sure, sure," Serena muttered as she flung open the door and ran out into the snow. She would deal with it later. Everything could and would be left until later except for Darien.

"Darien, Darien why aren't you picking up the Goddamn phone?" Serena asked his answering machine as she reached her bike, which Molly had put back in its place. "Listen, Darien, Molly ran into this jerk, Diamond Prince, on her way home and she told him I was locked up in some tower in your house. He's this crazy idiot who has a major crush on me so now he's on the way to your house. He's going to start something and knowing you, it's not going to end well. I'm hoping to God you get this message before you get home. I'm on my way, don't do anything stupid."

Serena sighed as she hung up, tucked her phone into her coat pocket and swung her leg over the bike. With one strong push, she was off. She didn't know how much time she had, but she knew that even if the road was clear she could never get there before Diamond and Darien ran into each other. She could only hope there wouldn't be blood on the ground when she did finally make it.

* * *

Darien sat, stunned still, his eyes watching Serena scamper up to her house but unable to call back her back. The second her lips made contact with his skin, he had lost the ability to move, a function that was only returned to him after she had slammed her front door behind her.

"Holy…" he trailed off as he reached up and rubbed his cheek roughly trying to make the tingling feeling he felt there go away. He knew what the feeling meant, but that didn't mean he wasn't scared of it.

"I need to talk to Andrew," he muttered to himself as he turned the key in the ignition and hit the gas. There was much to tell his friend, starting with the trip to the greenhouse and ending with the trade: a rose for a kiss. Not to mention the emotions that went along with all of it.

As Darien ploughed through the snow, he took a few deep calming breaths in an attempt to unscramble his brain, knowing that once he made it back to the chaos of the manor, he wouldn't stand a chance. Not even his gardens could present him with the reprieve driving did. It was the only time he could be truly alone. And it was because of this need to have some time alone that, when his phone rang, he ignored it. He even went so far as to carefully reach over and put the small device on silent. He would check it when he got home.

Ten minutes later, as he turned up his driveway and was reaching for his phone, now feeling calm enough to deal with whatever his household needed of him, he spotted a light haired man hassling whoever had been unfortunate enough to be closest to the door when the bell rang.

"You have got to be kidding me," Darien grumbled as he parked the car and jumped out of the vehicle, his phone forgotten as he ran forward to protect his family.

"What do you mean they're not here!" the man roared. Darien could see the frightened look on Luna's face and that, more than anything, angered him to no end.

"Didn't your mother ever teach you that it's not nice to yell at a woman?" Darien asked as he approached the man and pulled him back by his shoulder so that he was no longer bearing down on his head of staff.

"Shields!" the man exclaimed as he turned to face his attacker.

"What the hell?" Darien replied. The man was vaguely familiar, but he couldn't quite place the face.

"Where is she? What did you do to her?" the man continued, incensed for reasons Darien couldn't quite understand.

"Great, another intruder, but this time he's crazy." His blood was pounding in his ears. Who was this man to come onto his property and going around yelling about only God knows what?

"You bastard! Where is she?" Darien didn't even see his fist coming.

"What the fuck!" Darien swore angrily as he staggered backwards from the impact, his hand reaching up to cover the area of his face that would definitely be swollen by the next day. "Who the hell are you and what the fuck are you doing here?"

"I'm here for Serena you jackass," the man shot back. "What the hell did you do with her?" Darien wanted to hit him more than anything, but the sight of Luna kept him from swinging.

"What in God's name does that have to do you with you?" Darien growled as he glued his hands to his sides.

"I'm her boyfriend, that's what!" At this, another fist flew, but missed, only serving to aggravate the master of the manor further.

"Get off my property," Darien managed as he tried to keep a hold of his temper. It was what Serena would want and even if what this man said was true and the bubbly blond had been leading him on, he knew he had to be the better person if he ever wanted to win her over. Living with Lita, Raye and Mina had taught him that much.

"Diamond Prince never backs down from a fight." The image of three small boys playing together flashed through Darien's mind at the mention of the name. Diamond and Sapphire Prince were the sons of his father's old business partner. He had never liked either of the brothers but had played nice for as long as his mother was around to ask him to. And now that one of them was here, after all of those years, very much uninvited and with no one around to request good behavior, all he wanted to do was lash out in a big way.

"Pompous piece of work," Darien snarled as he shook his head and raised his arm to retaliate. It served as a minor satisfaction when Diamond stumbled over his feet and nearly fell-a satisfaction that barely covered for the upset he felt for having to fight in front of Luna. "Leave now."

"N-No!" Diamond retorted as he caught his breath and lunged forward. Darien's final coherent thought before throwing himself into the fight was a thankful one: Luna had finally retreated into the house and out of sight.

* * *

**A/N: Shoot. There goes the neighborhood.**

**And so, the beginning of the end is here. I see maybe three or four more chapters. I don't know. I've just been letting the story take me where it wants to go. It's a smart little plot bunny.**

**Anyway, as usual, thanks to all the readers, especially to those who review. I love you all dearly (brownie points to those who leave me some lovely praise/critique).**

**Also, I'd like to run an idea by you guys... would any of you want to read a twist on the big break up between Darien and Serena in season R? I was sitting in class the other day and this popped into my head: Serena's the one who gets the dreams and she breaks up with Darien. I won't write it if there's no interest because I have a lot of editing to do, but please let me know. If a bunch of people like the plot I'll write it. Please let me know and, if you have any idea for said plot, feel free to review to this chapter or PM me with details. I could always use some inspiration. Check my next author's note or my profile for updates!**

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby  
**


	14. Believe

**Disclaimer-****Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is Believe by Yellowcard.  
**

**

* * *

Chapter 14:**

"Holy crap," Serena breathed as she dropped her feet to the ground and bent over the handlebars of her bike. The burst of adrenaline she had felt when she first heard the news about Diamond heading up the manor was long gone. Now all she could feel was the fierce pounding of her heart in her chest and her aching legs. This had been a mistake of the highest order. But she couldn't turn back now. The manor was closer than home at this point anyway.

Serena looked down at her bike. She had slipped on the ice roads half a dozen times and almost took a very nasty spill. This definitely wasn't working. "The things I do…" she mused as she slipped off her bike and quickly chained it to the fence on the side of the road. She would walk the rest of the way.

When she finally did make it to Darien's, she figured she was about a half hour behind. She was hoping beyond hope that there had been some trouble on the road or any sort of delay that would prevent the worst possible scenario, but the likelihood of that was slim and she knew it.

The sight that she was greeted with reinforced that. Granted, it wasn't as bad as she thought it would be, but it still wasn't what she had been silently praying during her ride back to the manor.

"Oh God," Serena breathed as her cerulean eyes went wide in an attempt to process the sight before her. Darien was bearing down on Diamond, pummeling his face into the ground ruthlessly. While the sight was slightly horrifying, what happened next was even worse.

Serena didn't know how, but, before she could even register what was happening, Diamond somehow found a way to regain the upper hand and was on his feet, kicking Darien in the ribs. That, more than anything, scared her to death.

"Enough!" Serena shouted as she bolted forward, snapped out of her daze by the sickening sound of Diamond's boot meeting Darien's stomach. "Diamond, leave him alone!" The dark haired man was lying in the snow, curled up in a ball in an attempt to defend his body from the blows. She had to do something to give him time to breathe, she just didn't know what.

Struck with an idea, Serena latched her small hands around the assailant's arm and pulled on it with all of her strength only to be thrown backwards, swatted like a fly by a distracted Diamond.

"Diamond!" Serena shrieked as she pulled herself back onto her feet and began beating on his back in an attempt to get him to leave Darien alone. She wasn't sure how much longer his ribcage could take the beating and she didn't want to find out. "Diamond, stop it! It's enough! You're going to kill him!"

"It's what he deserves for what he did to you!" Diamond grunted in response as he continued the abuse.

"He didn't do anything," Serena whispered as tears filled her eyes. "He didn't do anything!" she repeated, only this time it sounded like a war cry as she jumped onto Diamond's back and used her hands to block his vision. This maneuver was the out that Darien needed. Just as Diamond was throwing the petite woman off of him, back into the snow, he realized that his opponent was once again on his feet and swinging.

Serena watched in fear and awe as the two men swiftly pushed their way further back into the property, and almost before she could blink, she watched as Diamond delivered a punch that sent Darien flying through the glass of the greenhouse.

As this moment, two things happened simultaneously. First, a loud cry echoed through the yard, shaking the birds out of the trees and nearly reaching the sky before returning to earth. The second was the announcement of police cars, heralded in by the distant sounds of sirens in the distant.

Serena needed a minute and two forms rushing out of the manor to realize that she had been the one to scream. It was her voice that had rung through the air at the sight of Darien being shoved through solid glass and it was her feet running forward to do… well… she wasn't sure what she was planning to do, but she had to do something.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Serena sobbed as she used all the force in her thin arms to push a stunned Diamond backwards before climbing through the Darien shaped hole in the glass and dropping to her knees, not caring that the glass was cutting into her jeans. "Darien, are you okay? Please be okay."

Her breath caught as she took in Darien's prone figure. He wasn't moving and, even though she could see him breathing, that wasn't enough. He had to move. He had to show her he was still in one piece.

"Darien, please open your eyes, please," she begged as she reached forward and brushed the glass off his face and chest, only to realize Darien still wasn't wearing a coat. He had rushed out of the house with her earlier that morning without one, claiming that he wouldn't need it. It wasn't like he was going to spend much time in the outdoors.

"Oh God," Serena mumbled as she took in his blue lips before unzipping her coat and leaning forward to try to transfer some of her body heat to him. "Come on Darien, please wake up," she continued as tears fell from her eyes and onto his chest.

"Serena, c'mon, you need to get up so the paramedics can help him," a soft, kind voice whispered into her ear. But no matter how friendly the familiar voice was, Serena couldn't bring herself to move. She couldn't bring herself to leave him.

"No," Serena wept into his chest as she tightened her grip on his torso.

"Yes, sweetie, it'll be okay. We'll follow them to the hospital. It'll be alright," the voice pressed as someone set their hands on her shaking shoulders. She didn't want to let go, but she knew she had to, at least for now.

"Okay," Serena mumbled as the hands pulled her to her feet and away from Darien's prone body so the paramedics could do their work. Her eyes only left his rising and falling chest for a second to watch as the police cuffed Diamond and led him to a car a few feet away. A twinge of satisfactions ran down her spine. The bastard deserved it.

"Is he going to be okay?" Serena asked, her voice small and fearful as she turned to see that it was Raye who had come to her aid. It was odd to see the raven-haired girl looking unsure of herself. In the few hours the blond had to get to know the taller girl, she had seen her as a strong, confident person and the fact that she wasn't now was near terrifying.

"He's too strong not to be," Raye replied as she wrapped a comforting arm around Serena's narrow shoulders.

"I know he'll be okay," another familiar voice stated shakily as she joined the two girls. Serena could just tell it was Luna.

"Did you call Andrew, Mina, Lita and Artemis?" Raye asked Luna softly. Call them? Where were they? Serena felt anger lightly bubble in the pit of her stomach. Why weren't Andrew and Artemis here to help? What could have been more important than being here?

"Yes, I did. Andrew and Artemis were so mad at themselves. I assured them that getting supplies and taking a stir crazy Diana off the grounds are very important tasks, not to mention that they couldn't have known this was going to happen," Luna sighed softly, as if reading Serena's mind. Of course the two men would have been there if they could have been. But instead of the anger dissipating, it refocused itself.

Diamond. He was the one responsible. He was the one who came out here and started something. He made a mess of everything. If Serena couldn't hold Darien's hand and beg him to wake up, she sure as hell wasn't going to stand around and do nothing. The only problem was that there was nothing productive she could think to do.

"Excuse me, I'm Officer Seiya Kou and if you ladies don't mind, I'd like to ask you a few questions individually," a tall, light eyed man with long black hair said as he slid in front of them suddenly, causing all three women to jump in surprise. As much as Serena liked getting what she wished for, this was becoming a little creepy.

"We're not splitting up and we're following the ambulance to the hospital," Raye said sternly as she stared the police officer down.

"As you wish," the officer nodded. "But I will have to question you three separately at the hospital."

"Whatever, just get on with it," Raye snapped angrily as she set her free hand on her hip and tightened her hold on Serena. The blond was grateful for the support but was eager to answer any questions that would get Diamond put away for as long as the judicial system would allow.

After spending about fifteen minutes of taking turns answering questions, the paramedics were ready to leave. Luna, Raye and Serena quickly excused themselves, promising to answer more questions at a later date, before hurrying to the last of the cars that were available: Darien's.

Serena curled up in the backseat as Raye, the calmest of the three, pulled out of the driveway after the ambulance. The blond felt numb as she watched the scenery blur into blobs of white and brown with the movement of the car. Darien was unconscious. Diamond was in a cop car on his way to the station where who knows what was going to happen to him, which he more than deserved. Somehow this wasn't what she had pictured for the continuation of her newly found friendship and crush. Granted, she hadn't thought it would be some sort of saccharine sweet happy ending, but this was too much. Everything was just happening too fast and there didn't even seem to be an end to look forward to.

"What's going to happen now?" Serena muttered to herself, just loud enough for the others to hear.

"Everything will be okay love, you just need to believe it," Luna said softly as she reached over and set a comforting hand on Serena's leg. For one brief second, the blond turned from the window and locked eyes with the dark haired woman before turning her gaze back to the non-descript scenery.

Luna was right. Darien was strong and capable. He was someone to believe in, even when everything, including him, seemed broken and lost. He, out of everyone Serena knew, would be able to get through this. And when he did wake up, the blond would be ready, willing and able to thoroughly scold him for the mess he had managed to make in her absence.

* * *

**A/N: Luna's so smart. I love her.**

**Relevant story time (aka first order of business): Tonight, I spent hours of my life baking. Over the course of said baking, I managed to burn the pad of my left index finger on a chocolate chip (FML-if you've never been to FMyLife . com, you're missing out). It's not helping my type anything. Not to mention that I'm exhausted because I'm up at like 4 am doing laundry and baking (what the hell is wrong with me?). So if there are any problems with chapter grammar or spelling-wise, please, please, please alert me to the issue ASAP. Also, because of this (the burnt finger), I may not have the next chapter out for a bit. Don't hate me.  
**

**Second order of business-I still need more assurance that my plot bunny introduced last chapter will get readers. Just a short PM or review will suffice. I've only got a few months left in Israel and I'm not going to spend them writing if it's just for me. Besides, if I'm being honest, it's never just for me, no matter how much it probably should be just for me (which is why I love getting reviews).**

**Third... thank you, thank you, thank you to all the readers and reviewers. You make all my writing possible. Really, you do. **

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby  
**


	15. The Way You Make Me Feel

**Disclaimer-****Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is ****The Way You Make Me Feel by Michael Jackson.**

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****Chapter 15:**

Serena pulled her legs up to her chest and set her chin on her knees. She hated hospitals. She hated that she was sitting there, waiting to hear what was wrong with Darien, to know if he was okay or not. She hated that there was nothing else she could do.

Officer Kou had come and gone. He had quickly finished the group questions and then took individual statements. He was efficient and kind. He said he would do everything he could to ensure that Diamond would end up behind bars. And even though Serena thought that those words would comfort her to a certain degree, she couldn't get her insides to unknot.

"How much longer do we have to wait?" Serena asked softly before biting her bottom lip nervously. She had never been good at waiting for anything, especially not something she wanted so badly but dreaded even more.

"Maybe we should take a walk," Raye suggested, unable to answer Serena's question, not that anyone, short of a doctor, could.

"Okay," Serena nodded as she stretched her cramped legs and got to her feet. As much as she wanted to stay there and wait, she knew she would probably lose it if she sat there any longer.

The two girls walked down the different hallways of the hospital for ten minutes, both trying to strike up a conversation to make things less awkward and more bearable, but both failed miserably. Somehow, small talk about the weather couldn't seem to see them through more than thirty seconds.

"Do you like him?" Raye asked suddenly as they passed through the pediatrics ward. It was by far the brightest section of the hospital, even though the sad faces of the many sick and ailing children only served to further Serena's depression.

"As what?" Serena replied curiously, her eyes watching a small girl in a large wheelchair, not wanting to face Raye. She knew the question was coming, therefore making it not much of a surprise. She had asked herself the question many times over the last few hours.

"As a significant other," Raye replied flatly. Serena nearly smiled. She appreciated her straightforward attitude and honesty and she would reward it with the truth.

"Yes," the blond said, no hesitation in her voice as she turned to face her companion. She couldn't deny the truth, even if she wanted to. In fact, if Raye had asked if she loved Darien, she wasn't sure that the answer wouldn't have also been yes.

"I thought so," the taller woman mumbled. "I think he likes you back." Serena nodded at this.

"I think he does too," Serena said with a small, sad smile on her face as she wrapped her arms around her torso and under her jacket in an attempt to comfort herself and keep warm. "And that's what makes all of this so much worse."

"It'll be okay," Raye assured softly as she tucked her hand into the crook of Serena's comfortingly.

"Yeah, hopefully," Serena prayed as her fingers made contact with the velvety petals of the rose she had forgotten was tucked inside her jacket. "Oh God no," she muttered as she detangled herself from Raye and pulled the flower out of her jacket. Surprise and anguish ran through her as she caught sight of the battered flower.

"Did Darien give that to you?" Raye asked, shock obvious in her voice as Serena cradled the damaged, yet beautiful red rose in her small, pale hands.

"Yes," Serena replied, her eyes filling with tears yet again. Darien had given it to her and she had destroyed it with her carelessness, just as she had nearly destroyed him with the same idiocy. Why couldn't she do anything right anymore?

"Girl, he really must like you. He doesn't part with those flowers easily," Raye informed knowingly. "I'm pretty sure the only time he gives those out are for broken bones, illnesses, birthdays and other special occasions."

"But I broke it," Serena confessed, pulling the rose closer to her chest as she looked up at Raye with tears in her eyes. "I broke it."

"It's not broken. It's just hurt. The damage isn't irreversible," Raye coaxed.

As this point, Serena wasn't sure if they were talking about Darien or the rose anymore, but what she did know what the wilting petals of the flower served as nothing more than a reminder of her recklessness. What was wrong with her? Why did she let bad things happen to the people she loved? First Molly and now Darien. And she knew if she told Raye what she was feeling the dark haired girl would only call her crazy and talk her away from the ledge of insanity that she was surely approaching, but she couldn't help it. Somehow she felt like all of this was her fault.

"I think that's Darien's doctor," Raye said suddenly as they reentered the waiting area they had vacated when they decided to take a walk. True to her word, a tall man in a white coat with a very serious, yet kind look on his face was talking to Luna. His hand movements were rapid and his mouth moved even faster.

Both women stood stock still, their feet stuck to the white, linoleum floor as the conversation between Luna and the doctor came to a close. They couldn't see the dark haired caretaker's face, so they couldn't begin to fathom just how bad it was. In all honesty, they were scared to know the truth. At least when they didn't know, they could pretend that it would all be okay, but once the verdict was out in the open, there would be nothing they could do to stop the potential bad news.

The one thing they knew was truer than anything else, however, was that they couldn't stave off the news for much longer. When the doctor nodded his farewell and walked away from Luna, they knew it would only be a matter of time before the older woman turned around and saw them. It would only be a matter of time before they saw the tell-all expression on her face. Would it be the kiss of death or the ray of light? Even in that moment, all Serena and Raye could do was fear the former and pray for the latter.

* * *

**A/N: I'm worried. Really I am.  
**

**So, unsurprisingly, my finger is just fine, so I was able to type this up over the last couple of days. I'm pretty sure this is my shortest chapter ever though. I was gonna keep going but this seemed like a really fun cliff hanger and I haven't done one of those in a while. Either way, I hope you liked it.  
**

**Anyway, thanks to all my readers and reviewers. You guys are the absolute best and I love you all. Please keep it up!! It makes me so happy.**

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby**

**PS - Someone asked me if something was going to happen between Serena and Seiya. I don't think so. He might show up again, but the truth is, I wasn't going to drag this story out much longer. I mean, I might because I need to figure out how to tie up the Diamond-Sapphire aspect, but if I brought Seiya into all of this, the story would go for much longer. Maybe a sequel? Oh boy, I'm putting ideas into my head. Well, if any of you would be interested in a sequel, let me know in a review or PM please! I also have two other plot bunnies on my profile page, so please read though them and let me know.  
**


	16. Crawling Towards the Sun

**Disclaimer-****Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is ****Crawling Towards The Sun by The Hush Sound.

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**

**Chapter 16:**

Luna had told them he would be okay. The doctor had been so kind as to relay that information, setting everyone at ease. However, it didn't change the fact that Darien was still fast asleep, still deep in the coma Diamond had thrown him into. The doctor assured that it was just a matter of time before the dark haired man woke, that there was nothing really wrong with him, his body just needed time to recuperate. This knowledge, however, wasn't enough to keep Serena and Raye from starting yet another circuit around the hospital, both women to nervous to even dream of standing still.

"Soon," Serena whispered, faint hope in her voice as she tucked the rose back inside her coat. "Soon."

* * *

When Darien opened his eyes, he instantly knew that he had lost the fight with Diamond and landed himself in the hospital. The blinding white walls and ugly gray ceiling were proof enough of that. What took a bit longer for him to process was that there was a tiny hand wrapped around his bigger one, clinging to him for dear life.

"Mmm," Darien mumbled as he slowly turned his head to find a pair of big, brown eyes staring up at him.

"Uncle Darien?" Diana whispered hopefully as she tightened her impossibly strong grip on his hand.

"Yes Diana?" Darien replied with a small smirk as the hazy cloud that weighed down his thoughts cleared only to be replaced with the throbbing of his many injuries. "Oh God," he gasped as he reached up and set a hand on his aching jaw, his smile fading as he realized just how much he was hurting.

"Mama told me to get the nice nurse lady when you woke up. Mama said she knows what to do!" Diana exclaimed as she reluctantly let go of her surrogate uncle's hand and ran off to get help. If nothing else, she was a perceptive little girl and for that Darien was grateful.

"Mr. Shields, it's good to see you awake," a woman in purple scrubs said as she walked into the room with Diana trailing behind her, her chubby fingers holding tight to the nurse's pant leg.

"Yeah," Darien grunted unintelligibly. The only thing he could process was the aches and stinging pains that ran through him from head to toe, especially in his back.

"Hm, I thought so," the nurse said as she pulled a syringe out of her pocket and injected the contents into his IV line. Seconds later, Darien's body was feeling the effects of the medication.

"Thank you," he sighed as he unclenched the muscles he hadn't even realized he was clenching. He could finally think straight and for that he was grateful.

"Now that you're feeling a bit better, we can go through some routine questions," the nurse said kindly. "My name is Trista and your chart says that you're quite the mess. The police were here and said you got into some fight?"

"Yeah, a fist fight," Darien muttered as he suppressed his embarrassment as best as he could. His fight with Diamond wasn't exactly his shining moment.

"And the glass in your back, that come from you going through a greenhouse?" Trista asked.

"Shit, my greenhouse," Darien cursed as the muddled details of the fight flooded his memory banks. "Oh God, Luna and Serena."

"Mama says not to curse, Uncle Darien," Diana reprimanded as she poked her head out from behind Trista's leg. "Is he okay now Nurse Trista?" the little girl asked hopefully as she looked up at the face of the woman who was temporarily protecting her from the realities of stupidity and life.

"I'm as good as I'm going to get for now, Di. I won't break," Darien assured with a small smile, causing the little girl to race out from behind Trista's leg and clamber her way onto the hospital bed so she could curl up next to her uncle.

"Good. I'd be really sad if you broke," the little girl said innocently as she snuggled up next to Darien. His smile widened just a little bit. No matter how stoic and angry his façade may become, he was glad to have Diana. She would always be able to make his icy exterior melt, if only temporarily, with a smile and a few simple, obvious words.

"Someone did something right in a past life," Trista noted, matching Darien's smile as her glance fell onto the dark haired girl for a brief second before looking back up at her patient. "You can feel everything? You can move your toes? No numbness?"

"Right," Darien replied, wiggling his toes exaggeratedly so that Trista could see it through the thin blanket that covered his legs. That had to be good news.

"Excellent. Well, the good news is that within a few weeks, you'll be as good as new. But perhaps, for the bad news, we should send the little one out," Trista said as she nodded towards the little ball beside him.

"She's sleeping," Darien replied wryly as he looked down to see the little girls eyes closed and drool already forming in the corner of her mouth. It was for the best. He wasn't sure how he was going to convince her to leave the room short of bribing her with a pony. Of course, that wouldn't be so bad if Diana didn't have a spectacular way of collecting on the bribes she's offered.

"Well, I suppose it's safe to list your injuries then," Trista sighed as she looked down at the chart one more time before flipping it shut and tucking it under her arm. "You sustained a bad concussion and a few bumps on the head to match. You cracked two ribs and bruised three others, which you'll need a brace for, if only for a couple of weeks. You've got bruises all over, especially on your jaw and shallow cuts all across your back from the glass. There are few pretty deep ones, but you got off pretty lucky, only a dozen or so dissolvable stitches. All in all, this could have been a lot worse."

"I already knew that," he sighed. "I'm assuming the others are out there."

"Well, they were," Trista replied. "You've been out for about twelve hours. The blond couple went home a couple of our ago while the brunette went to go find some half decent food. Diana's mother is stalking the nurse's station nervously, attempting to get more information about how you're doing. Diana's father is sitting outside reading a book while the dark haired one has taken the other blond one for a walk around the hospital."

"How is Serena, the other blond one?" Darien asked, his eyes going wide as he remembered how the petite blond had jumped on Diamond's back to give him time to breathe and get back on his feet. A million emotions flashed through him at the memory, but the most prominent of all was his utter incredulity. Maybe if it had been Mina, Raye or Lita he would have believed it, but it had been Serena, the girl he had met only a day before, the girl he found himself liking more and more by the second, who had rescued him. Why?

"She's pretty distraught," Trista admitted reluctantly as she eyed the sleeping child, as if making sure she wouldn't wake up and hear the adult talk. "She can't sit for too long or she'll start to sob, so the dark haired girl takes her on walks around the hospital." Darien swore under his breath. He didn't know why she cared so much, but the thought of her crying made him upset, if not a little bit angry.

"Please send Diana's father in? And if you see any of my other friends, especially Serena, please tell them I'm awake," Darien asked hopefully.

"Will do," Trista nodded as she turned and left the room. Darien sighed tiredly once she was gone. It was only when she was gone that he noted just how odd it was that he was so civil with her.

"Serena must be getting to me," Darien mumbled to himself as the door opened again, this time admitting Artemis into the room.

"I'm glad to see you awake, Darien. Luna was about ready to kill someone if you didn't wake up soon," Artemis noted, causing Darien to smile.

"I think there's been enough fighting for one day," Darien replied as Artemis just shook his head at the younger man.

"Perhaps."

* * *

"Do you think he'll _ever_ wake up?" Serena asked as she tucked her cell phone into her pocket. Molly had called her, full of apologies, three times an hour for the last twelve hours. Raye had been keeping count.

"I hope, for your sake," Raye replied with a snort as she nodded towards Serena's phone.

"She really means well," Serena sighed as she rubbed her eyes tiredly. Raye shook her head at her new friend as they passed by an empty gurney. It hadn't been there on their last circuit of the hospital. The dark haired girl briefly wondered what series of events brought the wheeled bed to that location, but shook the thought away.

"I don't see why you won't take a nap, Serena. We all have," Raye hassled for not the first time that night. The seamstress couldn't understand how the blond was still standing. Even with the three naps she had taken, she was still exhausted. She couldn't imagine how she would feel if she hadn't slept at all.

"I've tried, Raye, it's just, every time I close my eyes, the whole scene flashes through my mind and I'm too scared to sleep. I can't even begin to imagine what I'll see when I'm actually asleep and dreaming," Serena mumbled, shuddering at the thought.

"So what? You'll never sleep again?" Raye asked frankly as she and Serena plastered smiles onto their faces and nodded cheerily at one of the elderly women they had met on one of their earlier walks. The woman waved back, a genuine grin on her face.

"I just need to know he'll be okay. I need him to wake up," Serena replied as the smiled melted off their faces once the woman was out of sight.

"Oh Serena." Now it was Raye's turn to sigh. She wasn't quite sure what would happen if Darien didn't wake up. The doctor said he's in a coma and they couldn't possibly know when he would wake up. Of course, she couldn't bring herself to broach the topic. She didn't know how, but over the course of the last two or so days, Serena had wiggled her way so far into the lives of those in the manor and apparently they had done the same to her.

"I know, but I have to hope for the best," Serena said, answering the unasked question.

"We all do." It was true. Without Darien, the whole house would fall apart. Raye had, over the years, thought up a plan of action if her life at the manor ever disintegrated. It involved going to live with her grandfather at his temple. It wasn't exactly ideal, but she never thought she would have to follow through on it. Although, if he never woke up, she might have to and that was definitely not something she wanted to think about, let alone talk about.

For the rest of the walk, the pair moved in silence, eager yet nervous to make it back to their starting point. Raye prayed as they approached the nurse's desk that she would see something that would indicate good news. She hoped and begged the deity she and her grandfather worshipped that Darien would be okay and this nightmare would be over. She couldn't stand to see Serena shed any more tears. She couldn't go on any more walks with the blond. She couldn't pretend like it would be okay when she wasn't sure if she was telling the truth on not. This story needed to end, and it needed to end now.

"Raye, Serena," Luna gasped with tears in her eyes as the two girls stopped in front of the older woman. Raye's heart froze. The end was here. The story was over.

"Luna, what happened?" Serena asked, her voice small and hesitant. Raye could hear how scared she was. She could hear how little the blond wanted it to end, how terrified she was that the worst had happened. She could commiserate, but more than anything, she wanted Luna to just say it, to rip off the band-aid and hit them with reality.

"He woke up just after you two went on your walk," Luna answered, her eyes wide with joy and her face full of relief. As Serena rushed forward to give the older woman a hug, Raye finally let herself relax and let out the breath she didn't know she was holding in. He was okay. Everything was going to be okay. She wasn't sure how it happened or why she hadn't realized it until that point, but somewhere along the line, Darien had become their savior, their own personal superman. He was the glue that held their pieces together and without him nothing would ever be the same. Yes, without him they would get by. Without him they could even be happy. But life without him would never be the same, would never be as good, as life with him. It didn't matter how much she had to nag and reprimand him for his poor behavior or how much it irked her that he was perfectly content with living a life alone, he would always be the one she would reluctantly look to for a helping hand when she needed it most and he would always be there to give it to her in spades. No matter how bitter he might seem he was anything but. Perhaps he was confused, hurt and scared, but not bitter and never intentionally malicious. You just had to be able to get close enough to see it.

"He's okay?" Raye double-checked as Serena and Luna parted, both plagued with the telltale signs of crying.

"The doctor says he wants to keep him for another day to make sure everything is okay but after that he's free to go," Luna assured, causing Serena to laugh, showing all passersby that her tears were of the best sort.

"Can we see him?" Serena asked hopefully as she wiped her face dry as best as she could with her sleeve. "Have you seen him?"

"I was just in with him. Lita's in there now, but he's waiting for the two of you," Luna replied.

"Raye, you go ahead, I need to call Molly," Serena insisted as she continued to sniff back her tears.

"Okay," Raye replied with a short nod. She gave both women a brief hug before walking purposefully to Darien's room.

Once she got there, she set a hand on the cold, metal doorknob and stared down the white door in front of her. She knew what she would find on the other side. She knew it was okay, but turning the doorknob was sure taking a lot more effort than she thought it would.

"Oh come on Raye, snap out of it," she berated herself as she forced her fingers to turn the knob and push the door open.

"Hey Raye," a deep, familiar voice said as Raye let the door close behind her.

"Darien," Raye breathed as her eyes landed on the battered man lying in the hospital bed. "Darien Shields, how dare you scare me like that!" she exclaimed. Relief had passed and anger had taken its place. As usual it was her job to make sure he knew when he had done something wrong.

"I'm sorry Raye, I didn't mean to scare anyone," Darien replied. It sounded rehearsed, but she didn't care. She needed to hear it. She needed to hear him speak, to know that he was really okay.

"You could have fooled me, you idiot. I can't believe you. It's like you don't care what happens to you!" Raye continued as she walked forward, barely acknowledging Lita, who she noted was trying to hold in laughter, as she went. "One of these days something's going to happen to you and then what? Why can't you be more careful?"

"It's something I'm going to try, Raye, I promise," Darien said solemnly. It was then that Lita let her laughter loose.

"Oh Raye, lighten up," Lita chuckled as she walked forward and set a gentle hand on Raye's shoulder. "I think Darien's learned his lesson."

"He better have," Raye sniffed as she crossed her arms over her chest. The anger was settling. She had scolded him, as usual, and it seemed like he had received the message, that he understood. Everything would go back to normal after this. Darien would get better and it would be okay. Until the next time he did something stupid, that is.

"Knock, knock," a voice hesitantly called from behind the door, which had cracked open in the midst of Darien and Raye's fight.

"Come on in, Serena, Lita and I were just leaving," Raye said kindly, her demeanor changing completely as she opened the door for the nervous blond. She remembered how hard it was to open the door and she didn't think Serena really had to go through that as well.

"We'll see you later, Darien," Lita said as she crossed paths with Serena and slipped out of the room.

"Stay out of trouble," Raye teased as she turned to catch one more glimpse of her friend and employer before leaving the room. She hadn't been surprised to see his eyes and face swirling with emotion from the second he heard the blond's voice, but the sight still amused her and filled her with joy. Darien's icy protective layer was cracking. His heart was pulling free of the cold and crawling towards the radiant sun that had come around to thaw it out. It was a sight she had never thought she would see, but then again, she had never met anyone quite like Serena.

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**A/N: Oh Raye. You're crazy. Like me!**

**Chapter 16 was extra long to make up for chapter 15's shortness. I hope you all appreciate that (and review, please). Anyway, as usual, thanks to all the readers, especially those that reviewed. You guys are the absolute best, and don't let anyone ever tell you otherwise.**

**Also, I'd like to let you all know that there's not going to be a sequel to this story. The few reviews I've gotten on the subject have all said that they don't want a Seiya sequel, and I can understand that. And then I was thinking, Beauty and the Beast, the movie, doesn't need a sequel, so neither does this story. So I guess my next story will be the twist on the season R break up. Well, either that or a Harry Potter story. Both plots will be up on my profile along with other miscellaneous information, so please check it out and let me know what you think!  
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**Love and Luck,  
**

**Gaby**


	17. Just My Luck

**Disclaimer-****Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is ****Just My Luck by McFly.  


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**Chapter 17:**

"You're okay," Serena breathed as she finally laid eyes on the man she had saved from a potentially terrible fate mere hours ago. She was more than just a little relieved to see he was okay, but at the same time her anxiousness had returned in spades. She felt like a teenager with a silly little crush on a friend who either returns the emotions, like she and Raye had speculated, or was just being attentive enough to lead her on-unintentionally, of course.

"Did you expect any less?" he replied coolly. She wanted to punch him for that. Didn't he know how worried she was?

"You scared me to death," she returned softly. Her anger at his nonchalance gave her voice a sharp edge.

"I'm sorry," he muttered as he hung his head. Serena felt a brief twinge of triumph before remorse filled her. Here he was, lying in a hospital bed, and she was making him feel guilty about scaring her?

"No, I'm sorry," she sighed as she sat down in the hard, wooden chair that was set beside his bed.

"For what? I was the one who was stupid enough to get into a fight I couldn't win and then land myself in a coma. I didn't mean to scare you, or anyone else for that matter," Darien admitted.

"I shouldn't have attacked you just now," Serena began. "Besides, the whole thing with Diamond was my fault. He went to your house because of me, not for anything else." It felt good to come clean.

"I deserved it, I know that. How can I joke about being here when everyone I care about was so worried about me?" he asked rhetorically. Serena had a brief moment to ponder whether or not he included her in the group of people he cared about before he moved onto the next confession she had made. "But tell me, how were you planning on stopping Diamond? It's not like you told him to go to my house, harass my staff and then beat me up. Things happen. Life spirals out of control. You can't always control everything."

"I know," Serena said, knowing he was right. The only problem was that she still wasn't over it, "but he was there for _me_," she stressed. "He has this weird obsession with me. It's almost as if he knows he can't have me and because of that, he wants me more. Before now it was annoying, but now it's scary."

"You don't have a reason to be scared, Serena. From what Artemis tells me, he's in jail and I don't think he'll be able to buy his way out of this one, especially since I have more money than him," Darien told her honestly, trying to calm her down.

"But how long will he be in jail for? How long will he be forced to stay away from me? If he's going to beat you up to get me, who knows what else he'll do." Serena bit her lower lip anxiously. She hadn't really thought about this yet. She'd probably need a restraining order and, depending on whether or not Diamond received psychological help as a part of his punishment, she might even have to move. Or maybe she was just paranoid? She didn't know how to deal with borderline stalkers.

"Well I'll just have to get stronger so that next time I can kick his ass," Darien assured as his gaze captured hers. She could tell he wasn't just saying it and that allayed her fears somewhat, but not enough to make her drop the subject.

"I'm not always with you Darien," she pointed out. "And what if he goes after you to get you out of the way and then comes after me? What do I do then?"

"Serena, please, calm down," Darien coaxed as he shifted his position and reached out to take her hand. "You're letting your imagination run rampant, which isn't a good thing right now. Diamond's not crazy. He's just some stupid rich kid who needs to learn his lesson, and he will. This isn't a soap opera. He's not going to come after me with a gun, kill me and then kidnap you and force you to be his pretty little housewife. Most likely, when he gets out of jail, he'll sulk for a bit, move somewhere where no one knows who he is or what he's done and start up again with his usual debauchery. I don't think he has the brain capacity to do anything else. If this were his brother, Sapphire, then maybe we should be worried about some revenge plot. But Diamond? I don't think so."

"How do you know Sapphire?" Serena asked curiously. She hadn't mentioned him. Besides, Darien sounded like he knew Diamond pretty well. She couldn't say she knew really anyone she'd met the day before that well, not to mention that all the pair did was get into a fight.

"Their father and my father were business partners. The three of us were playmates as kids. Obviously that stopped after my parents died, but I've always been pretty decent at reading people," Darien shrugged. Serena raised a skeptical eyebrow.

"You knew Diamond was going to be a pretty boy and Sapphire was going to be the brains when you were 6 years old?" she asked as she noted that her fingers and Darien's were still intertwined, a situation she felt no desire to change.

"Well, that's what I thought when I was younger, but when I said it now, it was more of a guess. I could have been wrong, but I wasn't. It's called taking a risk," Darien explained matter-of-factly.

"A risk?" Serena asked incredulously, not believing his definition of the word. "I wouldn't exactly call that taking a risk."

"It is for me," Darien replied, silently reminding Serena of his background as a shut in. And boy, did she remember. "In fact, I've been taking a lot of risks recently."

"Oh yeah?" Serena asked, the underlying tone in her voice daring him to come clean with these so-called risks.

"I took in a stranger, gave her shelter through a storm and allowed her into my library, which I never do for someone I don't know," he began as he used his free hand to keep count of all of his accomplishments. "After the storm ended, I continued to allow said stranger to stay when I would have normally forced anyone else out right away. Then, I allowed this person to convince me to play childish games for an afternoon. After that, I took the risk of driving my guest home, even though the roads were slick and I'm not the most experienced when it comes to driving in bad weather. And finally, I allowed myself to get into a fistfight over a girl that landed me in the hospital. I would say it was a two-day roller coaster ride full of unusual occurrences and risks."

"Maybe those are risks for you, Darien, but for the most part I would say those are just life experiences," Serena insisted. He really never got out, did he? It was almost sad for her to hear that those were the adventures of his life. He was missing out on so much.

"What if I told you there was one more?" Darien asked her. She could hear the hesitation in his voice, see it in his eyes and feel it in his perspiring hand.

"I would listen carefully," Serena replied, confused as Darien dropped his head, examined their joined fingers and licked his lips all before opening his mouth again.

"I think I might have fallen into… like with this stranger who winded up staying in my house that night," he whispered, so softly she almost didn't hear him. But she did hear him, and the statement shocked her more than she thought it would. Not that she had been expecting it, more like dreaming of it, but she never thought that when he told her, she would freeze up so quickly and suddenly.

"I-I…" Serena trailed off, trying to force the sentences her brain was so desperately scrambling to create out of her mouth. It didn't help that Darien's eyes were locked on her face once again, seemingly examining her expressions and trying to make heads or tails of what she was thinking.

"It's okay if you don't feel the same. I'll just add this little declaration to the list of risks I've taken in the last few days. That's enough for me, I suppose," Darien said kindly with a small, half smile as he dropped his head again and quickly untangled her fingers from his. Her hand felt cold without his glued to it.

"No," Serena choked out as she tried as hard as she could to force back the surprise. This wasn't the way it was supposed to happen. She was supposed to say it right back. She wasn't supposed to get tongue-tied. They were supposed to ride off into the sunset together. Why was this happening now?

"But I'm going to ask you to leave me to wallow in my own idiocy," he added as an afterthought, his head still bowed. Serena was swearing at her brain. Why couldn't she speak? What the hell was wrong with her? Why couldn't she save him the pain of all this self-doubt? Was it because she was finally getting what she wanted? She had finally found a guy who didn't make her want to roll her eyes and walk away and _now_ was the time she couldn't make sense of herself? She was the biggest talker known to man and now was the time words failed her? This was, without a doubt, just her luck.

"No," Serena pressed, only this time her tone was more urgent. "No."

"No what?" Darien growled. His rejection was turning into anger and if his temper reared it's ugly head, she would never be able to say what her heart so desperately wanted him to hear.

"Me too," Serena gasped as she tugged at her hair, willing the words out, willing her tongue to untie itself.

"You too?" Darien asked as he finally looked up at her, his dark eyes full of confusion as he searched her face.

"Goddamn it!" she exclaimed, finally losing herself to frustration as she flung herself forward and pressed her lips to his.

"Oh," he mumbled as she broke the kiss and pushed herself off of him slightly, her arms on either side of his torso, propping her up.

"Oh," she echoed just as he reached up, snaked his hand behind her head and pulled her back down for more. Maybe it was a good thing actions had prevailed when words failed.

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**A/N: Hm, I don't think I've ever been at a loss for words quite like that before...**

**Well, that was my attempt at dramatic humor. I mean, come on, how much longer can I drag this story out for? I hope you all appreciated it.**

**As usual, I'd like to thank all of the readers and reviewers. You are the sunshine that guides me in the dark scary forest of life... sorry about that. I just had a major 'I'm-a-pretentious-loser' moment. But I do mean it. I love reviews. I'm kind of hoping to reach 100 before the end of the story, but I know that's just a dream. Either way, I'm not ungrateful for the reader loving I do receive.**

**The next chapter should be up soon, probably sometime next week. My friend's visiting and I'm away for the weekend, so that's gonna slow me down, but have no fear, I will rebound and this will soon be over. Maybe two or three chapters at most, I think, but as usual, refer to my profile for more detailed information.  
**

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby  
**


	18. Nothing In My Way

**Disclaimer-****Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is ****Nothing In My Way by Keane.  
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Chapter 18:**

Sapphire was fuming.

"I'll be right down," he spat into the receiver before snapping his cell phone shut and shoving it into his pocket with unnecessary force.

Why was he not surprised that his idiot of a brother had landed himself in jail? It was only a matter of time before that bonehead did something so completely illegal that he would get himself in this kind of trouble. Not that Sapphire had any idea what his brother had done. Diamond had been very short with him on the phone, ordering him to get down to the station as fast as physically possible. In response, Sapphire decided to take a quick shower.

After taking his time picking out his outfit and debating which coat to wear for much longer than absolutely necessary, Sapphire exited the apartment and strolled towards his car. He knew, without a doubt, that he was torturing his brother with every second he delayed and he was reveling in it. He could never outwardly defy him but he could, and would, toy with him in whatever way possible.

"I'm here for Diamond Prince," Sapphire said after finally making it to the police station and managing to grab the attention of one of the overworked, underpaid officers.

"Seiya!" the short, heavyset man who was manning the entrance of the police station called over his shoulder before turning to his phone, which was ringing shrilly on his desk, and answering it.

"Yeah?" a tall, dark haired man asked, surprising Sapphire as he poked his head out of one of the rooms that lined the hallway beyond the font desk.

"I've got a guy here asking for Prince," the man shouted back absently as he briefly tucked the receiver under his chin so he wouldn't yell in the ear of whoever he was talking to.

"One sec," Seiya replied as he ducked back into the room. Sapphire watched the door of the room the man was in carefully as the seconds ticked by, idly pondering his next plan of action.

When Seiya finally did emerge from the room, Sapphire had yet to decide what to do with his dead weight brother. There were very few options, but they all had their pros and their cons. Obviously, he could pay the bail, whatever that may amount to, and then carry on throwing money around in an attempt buy his brother out of this. Alternatively, he could pay the bail now and then watch his brother go through a fair trial and get thrown in jail. The younger man wasn't quite sure what his brother had done to land himself in prison, but he could assume this wasn't just some petty charge. The final option was to just leave after finding out what had happened and let his brother rot in jail.

"What's your relation?" Seiya asked briskly as he engaged Sapphire in conversation. The dark haired Prince liked this officer. He clearly valued his time and for that he was grateful.

"Diamond's my older brother," Sapphire replied dutifully.

"Do you know what your brother's in for?" Seiya pressed on.

"No, he didn't tell me," Sapphire answered, unable to keep the curiosity from his voice. What could his brother have done?

"He trespassed on private property, harassed the people who lived on the property he invaded, damn near killed the owner of said property and assaulted a bystander who was only trying to stop him," Seiya explained.

"Is Mr. Shields alright?" Sapphire asked with a sigh. Oh Diamond. He was so reckless-too reckless.

"Yes," Seiya responded with a confused look on his face. "How did you know your brother attacked Darien Shields?"

"A love interest of Diamond's got stuck up at the Shields manor during the storm and he went to retrieve her. I can only assume things went sour. I'm even willing to bet the bystander assaulted was Ms. Tsukino herself," Sapphire informed, taking a few gambles with his assertion, but not feeling in the wrong at all.

"Very perceptive, Mr. Prince," Seiya nodded. "You should know, however, that your brother will be put on trial and most likely sent to jail."

"It's about time something like this happened to Diamond. His head is too big and nothing can deflate an ego like a little time behind bars," Sapphire replied, truly believing his words.

"Would you like to speak to your brother?" Seiya asked. Sapphire could see the calculating look in the officer's blue eyes. He could understand. His reaction wasn't exactly that of a loving brother's.

"No, not really. I think it's best you tell him he didn't receive bail and then do your best to keep him here for as long as possible. Perhaps encourage Ms. Tsukino to file for a restraining order and get Diamond some psychological help," Sapphire suggested, throwing out some of the different ideas he had thought up on his way over. He couldn't honestly say he was doing this because he loved his brother, even though that would be the excuse he would use if asked. In reality, it was probably because he loved his family name and the power, fame and money that came along with it, but regardless, he was right. This was exactly what the heir to the Prince legacy needed.

"I'm not sure I can do that, Mr. Prince," Seiya replied hesitantly. Sapphire sighed. What he was asking for _was_ just a little bit illegal.

"Honestly, it'd be safer to keep Diamond in prison as opposed to letting him out to do even more damage. My brother doesn't have a good head on his shoulders and I'm almost positive he'll go after Mr. Shields and Ms. Tsukino again. In this particular case, I think it's better to be safe than sorry. I would hate to have to come down here to deal with some sort of manslaughter charge," Sapphire lamented, his response only half sincere.

"I'll see what I can do," Seiya said with a nod. "Would you like to speak with your brother?"

"No," Sapphire shrugged. What he really wanted was to go back to the apartment and finish his book. "If there's nothing else…" he trailed off.

"Nothing that I can think of. We'll give you a call if anything comes up." With that, the two men shook hands and turned to go in their respective directions. Sapphire allowed a smile to appear on his face as he left the police station, the remains of his previous irritation completely fleeing his consciousness as he walked. For now, he was free. For now, he didn't have to deal with his brother. For now, he could run the company and do as he pleased. Perhaps he would even have a shot with one of those pretty little blond girls who always followed Diamond around. He always suspected that they were just in it for the money and now that he was in charge, he was pretty sure they would fall over their feet for him. He wouldn't be as callous as his brother had been. In fact, to make up for Diamond's poor behavior, he might have to accept all of their advances.

"Oh yes, this will be nice," Sapphire muttered to himself, his smile growing as he slid into his car and carefully drove back home through the ice and snow. His future was looking quite bright, for once, and he wasn't going to let the opportunity slip through his fingers.

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**A/N: Sapphire's such an ass. I love it.**

**This should tie up the Diamond-and-Sapphire portion of the story. I hope it lived up to everyone's expectations, even though it's super short. I probably could have added on a section with Darien and Serena, but I thought it would be better to deal with this separately because it doesn't really fit with the romance aspect of this story.**

**Once again, I must extend many thanks to my readers, especially those who review. With every chapter I'm getting closer to my goal of 100 reviews and that's thanks to you guys.**

**The next chapter should be out soon. I'm on vacation now, so this story should be finished up pretty soon. As always, keep an eye on my profile page for my accurate updates!**

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby  
**


	19. The News

**A/N: I never write author notes before the actual story anymore, but this one's IMPORTANT. I was looking through the story and noted that at the end of chapter 15, I have Luna talking to a doctor and then Raye and Serena approaching her to hear the news but come Raye and Serena's part in chapter 16, they're still walking around the hospital. Discrepancy much? So I went back and put in two paragraphs at the beginning of chapter 16 to fix things. I'm guessing this didn't really bother anyone since no one said anything, but the problem is fixed so you guys can go back and see what changed between the two if you like. It doesn't make a difference now, but it makes the story make sense.**

**And now back to your regularly scheduled program...**

**Disclaimer-Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is The News by Jack Johnson.  
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Chapter 19:**

This time when Serena opened the front door to her house, no one accosted her. She had been braced for such an event and when it didn't take place, she let out a deep sigh of relief. She knew she was going to have to talk to Molly about absolutely everything that had happened in the last few days, but she wanted to do it on her own terms.

"Molly?" Serena called as she reached into her pocket to retrieve the beaten up rose she had carefully stowed away before going in to see Darien. She didn't want him to see what had happened to the best of his precious red roses before she had the chance to at least see if she could save it.

"Molly?" Serena asked again as she slipped off her jacket, tossed it on the coat rack and walked into the kitchen to look for a vase to put her flower in. "Moll, do you remember where I put that thin vase my aunt gave me for Christmas last year? I can't seem to-wait, never mind, I found it," she mumbled, talking to herself as she set down her rose on the counter and reached into the back of one of the cabinets to retrieve the aforementioned vase.

"Hey Serena," a timid voice said as Molly walked into the room. Serena quickly washed the dust out of the vase, filled it up with water, set it on the countertop, next to her flower, and turned to face her roommate.

"Hey Molly," Serena replied with a small smile on her face.

"Serena, what happened? I was so scared when you called me from the hospital," Molly admitted. Serena could hear the tension in her friend's voice. The redhead was near hysterics.

"Molly, calm down," Serena soothed as she walked over to her friend and guided her over to the kitchen table so the two could sit and talk. "None of this is your fault."

"But I sent Diamond over there! How could this not be my fault?" Molly asked miserably as she lowered her eyes to the table in shame. Serena barely managed to keep her impatience at bay.

"It's not your fault. You thought I was in trouble and you did what you had to do to make sure I would be okay. If anything, considering the information you had, you did the right thing. To be honest, if I were in your shoes, I probably would have done the same thing," Serena coaxed, shocked at herself for saying such things. She knew, however, that she wasn't just lying to make her friend feel better. She really meant everything she said.

"Really?" Clearly Molly was surprised as well. "But you hate Diamond."

"I do hate Diamond, but you don't, so it made a lot of sense for you to go to him," Serena shrugged, pressing forward in her attempt to see this from Molly's point of view. It was the only possible way for her to accept what her friend had done, and there wasn't enough room in the petite blond to hold a grudge, especially not against one of her best friends.

"Tell me what happened, Serena," Molly whispered after a brief period of silence, during which both girls had processed everything that was said after the past few minutes.

"What happened?" Serena began as she got to her feet and walked back over to the kitchen counter to take care of her rose. "I made my way back to the manor only to find Diamond and Darien in the middle of beating each other up. The fight ended with Diamond sending Darien through the glass of the greenhouse. Someone must have called 911 and now Diamond's locked up in prison and Darien's resting in the hospital."

"Is D-Darien going to be okay?" Serena bit her lower lip as Molly stumbled over Darien's name. Was now a good time to tell her friend that she was most definitely falling for the man whose name the redhead couldn't bring herself to say without stuttering in fear? Probably not, but the blond knew she would have to spill soon. Ami would be home before they knew it and the quiet genius could read her faster and easier than she could read a children's book.

"He'll be fine," Serena replied as she looked away from the kitchen counter for a brief second to support her statement with the innocence and honesty that was visible in her facial expression. "I spoke to him before I left the hospital. He's in some pain, but he's taking medicine for it. The doctor says he needs to stay one more day for observation, but that's about it."

"Well that's good," Molly sighed as Serena opened a drawer and pulled out a pair of scissors to cut off the broken end of the stem. The rose was quite a bit shorter now, but with the dead end gone and a few lose petals picked off, the red bloom looked as good as new, just as Raye said it could.

"Yeah, it is," Serena replied softly as she brought the rose to her nose and smelled it's intoxicating scent. She smiled as she realized that Darien smelled like roses.

"Serena?" Molly asked curiously. Serena's smile shrunk in size at her friend's voice. She knew she would have to tell the redhead the truth and hope for the best.

"Molly," Serena mumbled as she gently set the rose in the water and turned to face her friend again. "Molly, I need to tell you something."

"You can tell me anything Serena," Molly answered, a worried look on her face.

Serena nodded as a brief bout of confidence flooded her. She wasn't ashamed of the way she felt towards Darien and she was going to hide it. Besides, her friend was right. She could tell her anything. Molly had been her best friend since they were kids and if she couldn't tell her, then she couldn't tell anyone else. Darien didn't seem like the kind of guy who would be okay with a secret relationship, and she definitely wasn't that kind of girl, either.

"I don't know what happened after you left Molly, but Darien changed," Serena began as she sat down next to her friend again. "I don't know when or why it happened either, but I like him. I honest to God like him, and I think I may even come to love him. And he likes me too."

"Serena!" Molly exclaimed happily. "That's incredible! I can't believe it! I've been so worried you'd never find someone," the redhead babbled, her voice full of joy for her friend's discovery.

"So you're not mad?" Serena asked carefully, not wanting to incite her friend's anger if she wasn't already incensed.

"Mad? Why would I be mad?" Molly asked in confusion. "Sure, he was a jerk to me and he's definitely going to have to apologize and make a good second impression, but if he makes you happy then I can't complain. You're clearly a good judge of character, Serena. You knew Diamond was up to no good, even when I couldn't see beyond his good looks and smooth voice. Besides, if he hurts you, I'm sure Ami will think up something to torture him with."

"Oh Molly," Serena giggled as she leaned forward and threw her arms around her friend's neck. This conversation had gone much better than she could have ever hoped for.

"What did you think I would say, silly?" Molly asked as she got to her feet and went to examine the glass vase Serena had asked her about earlier. "Is this from lover boy?"

"Molly!" Serena exclaimed, her voice full of mirth at her friend's question.

"Well, is it?" the redhead pressed curiously. Serena smile's widened as she stood once more.

"Yes, it's from Darien. He gave it to me before the whole hospital thing though, which was when we kissed," Serena explained dreamily as she reached forward, took the vase and set it in the center of the kitchen table.

"He kissed you!" Molly shrieked joyfully as she pounced on her friend. "He _kissed_ you? How was it? What _happened_? Tell me more!"

"Well, in all honesty, I kissed him…" Serena mumbled, her words once again getting cut off by her friend. The blond knew girl talk could be intense. She was always one to ask a million questions about the smallest thing, but she had never been on the receiving end of any of those questions. It was a strange first, one she couldn't say she disliked.

"You kissed him!" Molly shouted, so loudly that Serena suspected even people sitting at the arcade could hear, before dragging the blond into the living room so they could talk in a more comfortable atmosphere.

As Molly rattled off her list of questions, each one more invasive then the last, Serena couldn't stop the smile on her face from growing, nor could she stop the laughter from escaping her mouth. Her heart floated with elation at the ever-present thought of her and Darien, especially as she remembered their kiss. She couldn't wait to be back in his arms again.

"Are you even listening to me, Rena?" Molly asked as she tugged at her friend's arm impatiently.

"No, sorry," Serena admitted as she shook off her errant thoughts. "But I am now."

"Good!" the redhead cheered as she repeated herself, this time with Serena trying her best to listen carefully. It was hard, considering all her mind wanted to think about was Darien, but she did her best. After all, not even Molly had enough patience to repeat herself for a third time.

* * *

**A/N: -Insert girly squeal-**

**Again, thank you to the readers and reviewers. You guys are my favorite people in the world. I love you all, especially my reviewers. I'd also like to extend a thank you to those who check out my profile. It makes me feel loved, even if you're probably only doing it because I promise to keep more up-to-date information about my writing schedule there.**

**Anyway, I hope you all saw and read the IMPORTANT note I wrote above. Please, please, please let me know if you see any other mistakes of the like or even just some grammatical error or a sentence that doesn't make sense. I want this story to be the best it can be and I don't have a beta, so it's not the easiest task. Other than that, read, review, stalk my profile (I really don't mind) and have a fantastic rest of the week!**

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby**


	20. Some Love

**Disclaimer-Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is Some Love by Moshav Band.  
**

**

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Chapter 20:**

"Serena! Stop it!" Mina giggled as she tried to ward off her friend's attempt to force a chocolate milkshake on her.

"C'mon Mina, a little chocolate never hurt anyone," Serena pouted as she continued to convince her friend to take just one sip.

"I'm on a diet," Mina protested stubbornly as she crossed her arms over her chest and turned her head. In response, Serena just shoved the shake closer to the girl so that the long straw sticking out of the glass was poking her in the face.

Lita shook her head at the two blonds before reaching forward and taking the milkshake for herself. When Raye, Molly, Serena, Mina and Ami turned to look at her with incredulous looks on their faces, she simply shrugged.

"If you two weren't going to drink it, I figured it shouldn't go to waste," Lita stated before dipping her head to take a long sip of the cold drink. The other five girls around the table couldn't help but break into laughter, completely eliminating the argumentative atmosphere that had surrounded them only seconds earlier.

"Serena, the library got in some new books the other day. I put a few on the side for you that I thought your boyfriend might not have. You should stop by," Ami informed lightly with only a hint of teasing in her voice.

"Unlikely," Serena snorted, not taking the bait. "You have to see this place Ames. You would never, ever leave. It's hard enough for _me_ to leave."

"Trust me, there have been nights when she doesn't come home and I'll call, completely frantic because I think she's been eaten by wolves or something," Molly inserted. "Of course, when I finally end up calling Darien because she refuses to pick up her phone, I realize that she's simply lost track of time."

"Hey! I never refuse to pick up my phone! I just don't hear it," Serena protested as all of her friend burst out into another round of giggles.

The six girls hadn't been hanging out together for very long, but ever since Serena had joined the two groups of three only days after Darien was discharged from the hospital they had been spending a lot of time together. Now, only a month later, the girls acted as if they had known each other for years.

"Oh my God, you guys, I forgot to tell you!" Molly squealed in excitement once the laughter had died down, her voice thick with emotion. "Melvin called me last night and told me he's sick of us being apart and after the summer he's transferring so he can go to college with us."

"Does this mean what I think it means?" Serena asked, her eyes bright and brimming with joy.

"What do you think this means?" Raye pressed in confusion. The other three girls nodded along, clearly wanting the answer just as much as the dark haired seamstress.

"I think he might propose when I go home at the end of the semester," Molly mumbled before biting her lower lip as the flood of congratulations and good cheer flooded the booth.

"I am so the maid of honor!" Serena called over the din, causing the noise level to rise, whether from disagreement or from complete incredulity in the blond's pronouncement.

"Please tell me it's Mina and Andrew getting married. I'm so sick of them dancing around it," a deep voice begged from behind Serena as a pair of hands casually settled on her shoulders.

"Darien!" Serena gasped as tilted her head back to catch a glimpse of her boyfriend. "How did it go today?"

"It was fine," Darien replied shortly before bending over so he could kiss Serena, properly greeting her.

"Mmm, you're not getting off that easy," Serena scolded as she scooted over, pushing the other girls further into the booth and making room for Darien. "Sit. Tell," she commanded.

"There's nothing to tell," he mumbled with a sigh as he sat down, forcing a small smiling of greeting for the other girls. They all smiled in return but kept their mouths shut and eyes wide, hopeful for the information Serena was bound to make him tell.

"C'mon, Darien, don't keep us waiting," another male voice insisted as Andrew closed in and set his hands down on the laminated tabletop.

"Hey Andy," Mina said sweetly as she wrapped her slim hands around her boyfriend's wrist.

"Well, since you're all here," Darien grumbled in annoyance before beginning his short tale. "I told them what happened, same as Serena, Luna and Raye did yesterday. Then Diamond told his side. The jury went out to deliberate and ten minutes later they came back with the guilty verdict. His sentencing hearing is next week, but I'm not going to that. The DA's just going to call me and tell me how it goes."

"Just as I thought," Lita nodded, the other girls and Andrew allowing their looks of nervous anticipation slip into easy smiles of relief.

"I'm glad you talked us out of going," Serena whispered softly so that only Darien could hear as everyone else began to chatter about Molly's potential engagement and plans for the weekend.

"I'm glad you finally agreed," Darien replied with a wry smile as he leaned forward and set his forehead against hers. "The only reason I went is because I had to be there."

"I know, I know," Serena shot back as she rolled her eyes at him. They had gone through the arguments for hours the night before. The blond caved just before midnight struck. Needless to say, it had been another night that Molly frantically called the manor searching for her roommate.

"Sorry," the dark haired man said sheepishly before jutting his chin forward and claiming yet another kiss from his fair-haired girlfriend.

"I love you," Serena reminded him, the pair still lost in their own world as they locked eyes and shifted even closer together. She had admitted as much to him the night before, hopeful that he would return the emotion, but even if he didn't, she had known that saying it would be a risk. She had known, but she said it anyway, unable to hold it in any longer. If nothing else, he needed to know just for the sake of knowing that someone out there loved him the way she did.

"I love you too," Darien replied as his eyes misted over in an uncharacteristic show of emotion, just as they had the night before during Serena's original confession. She smiled widely at the replay of his overwhelmed response.

"Hey, hey, hey, you guys have been off on the moon for way to long. Break it up!" Raye insisted as she tugged at Serena's shoulder with a little more force than necessary in order to pull the lovers apart.

"Oh Raye, leave them alone," Mina protested with a wistful look on her face. "They're in love, can't you see that?"

"I think everyone from here to Australia can see that," Raye snorted as she crossed her arms over her chest and leaned back into her seat.

"Oh Raye, don't be discouraged. Just because all of us have boyfriends doesn't mean we've forgotten about you," Ami said softly as she reached out and set a comforting hand on the fiery girl's arm.

"Definitely not!" Lita exclaimed. "Ken told me he has a friend who works down at the music shop who sounds perfect for you. I met him last week. It's weird. He doesn't remind me of any of my ex-boyfriends."

"Well that's a plus," Molly teased, causing Lita to shove her lightly into Serena's side while the others hid their small smiles of amusement. "I'm sorry Lita, but they wouldn't be your ex-boyfriends if they were any good at all."

"Y'know, you may have a point," Lita agreed thoughtfully as everyone's smiles grew.

"Oh no! It's 2 already?" Mina gasped as her eyes absently made contact with the clock on the wall above the kitchen doorway. "I promise Luna I would watch Diana this afternoon! I'm going to be so late!" the blond exclaimed as she jumped up, pecked Andrew on the cheek, waved goodbye to the girls and dashed out of the arcade.

"I better go back to work," Andrew sighed as he turned back to the front of the arcade to tend to a couple of college kids who were carefully studying the menu.

"My lunch break's up also," Ami said as she got to her feet, dropping some money on the table as she went.

"I better go also. Grandpa could use some help around the temple," Raye informed as she placed her share on the table and got up as well.

"Oh! On your way, maybe we could stop at the music store and I can introduce you to Chad!" Lita exclaimed cheerfully as she dug out a few crumpled bills from the bottom of her purse and handed them to Serena who was already counting everything out.

"Chad?" Raye asked, disdain in her voice as the three made their way out of the arcade.

"She's a tough one, isn't she?" Molly asked as a large smile broke out on her freckled face. "I'm gonna go give Melvin a call before I start working. There's another fair coming up next month and I'm actually hoping I'll make it to this one."

"Good luck Moll," Serena said in farewell as she counted the money one more time.

"I like it better when it's just you and me," Darien commented off-handedly as he examined the check Andrew had left on the table some time before. Serena blushed prettily at his comment. "You have enough?" he asked as he turned to catch his girlfriend's gaze, which was on him instead of on her task.

"Oh, yeah, I think so," Serena mumbled embarrassed as she shifted her line of sight from Darien's face to the money in her hands, needlessly counting yet again.

"You're so cute when you're like this," Darien whispered into her ear before kissing her softly on her temple.

"You're not so cute when you're teasing me," Serena complained as she stuck her tongue out at him.

"Don't stick that out unless you plan on doing something with it," the dark haired man warned, his eyes dancing playfully.

"Hm, well there's a good idea," the petite girl replied as she put down the money and quickly twisted her torso, making contact with Darien's lips before he could even register what was happening.

"Hey, you two, this is a family establishment. Take it somewhere else," Andrew grumbled good-naturedly as he stopped by briefly to break the couple up and collect the money he was owed.

"Sorry Andrew," Darien said sheepishly after pulling away from Serena, who was biting her lower lip and feeling properly chastised, even though it was just a joke. "Shall we continue this elsewhere, my love?" he asked gallantly as he got to his feet and offered his hand to the seated blond.

"You've never had a better idea, dearest," Serena replied as she slipped her slender hand into his larger one and allowed him to pull her to her feet. She smiled as he pulled his hand from hers only to drape it over her shoulder in a more protective, possessive fashion.

"You know I only have eyes for you, silly," she commented, reading his body language easily as they walked.

"Yeah, but they don't know that," Darien grumbled in return, causing Serena to giggle as the pair absently waved goodbye to Andrew before exiting the arcade just as the rest of the girls had done minutes earlier.

"Now that we're out of Andrew's precious family establishment," Serena mocked as they walked down the icy street carefully, her tone playful, "why don't you give me some of that loving?"

"Now who's being silly?" Darien asked, mirth filling his voice as he tilted his head downwards so he could meet his girlfriend's waiting lips.

"Mmm, still you," Serena teased as she pulled back, happy that everything had turned out the way it had. A million things could have gone wrong, but somehow, everything was just perfect. It was almost as if they were in a fairytale and this was their happily ever after.

"If you say so," he replied softly as he pressed a kiss onto the tip of her nose and tightened his grip, causing Serena to sigh happily, glad that this was the end to their story.

* * *

**A/N: And then they walked into the sunset and everyone was happy forever and ever and ever...**

**Well, that's the basic gist anyway.**

**For all intents and purposes, that's the end. I mean, there's going to be an epilogue, which should appear soon I hope. I have it all planned out in my head (unlike this chapter, which I pulled out of thin air... which might mean it's not the best. I don't know. You tell me), so basically it should be out soon. I can tell you right now, it's going to be very, very cute.**

**Anyway, as usual, much, much, much love to my readers and especially the reviewers. Please help me get to triple digits in reviews before this is all over. That would make my vacation for sure.**

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby  
**


	21. Life Is Wonderful

**Disclaimer-Sailor Moon and Beauty and the Beast do not belong to me. The song for the chapter title is Life Is Wonderful by Jason Mraz

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Epilogue:**

"… Soon enough, all the servants and friends had their fairytale weddings. The maiden, of course, didn't understand why the prince hadn't asked her to get married yet, and one day she got sick of waiting," a petite, fair haired woman said softly as she smoothed down her daughter's long, tangle-free hair.

"And what happened?" the little girl asked curiously, her wide eyes begging her mother to finish the story she already knew so well.

"She asked him," she replied with a shrug, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Don't worry though. The prince had a pretty ring for the maiden and he gave it to her later that night to make the her happy, but it was all the maiden's doing."

"Why did the prince wait so long?" the girl asked after a moment of thought. Serena smiled at her daughter. Even after a year of hearing this story at least once a week, the little girl always had a different query on the series of events. Last week she asked about the significance of a pretty ring and tonight she questioned the motives of the prince.

"You have to promise not to tell anyone, Rini," Serena said softly as she leaned forward, as if to tell a very important secret to her small daughter.

"I won't, I promise," the girl agreed as she shook her head, a serious look on her face that nearly caused her mother to break out into laughter.

"Okay, I'll tell you," the blond replied as she pushed her long hair away from her face and behind her shoulders. "The prince was scared."

"Scared? But princes don't get scared!" Rini protested in disbelief as she sat up in her bed. Serena smiled at this. No, usually princes in stories weren't scared, but this wasn't just a story.

"Princes are allowed to be scared, love," Serena chastised softly as she gently pushed her daughter back into bed. "Everyone gets scared sometimes."

"Like how you're scared of thunderstorms?" Rini asked innocently as she snuggled back into her sheets.

"Yes, just like that," Serena replied, pulling the comforter tightly around Rini as the small girl let out a loud yawn.

"So why was he so scared?" the sleepy child asked.

"Because he thought the maiden would say no," Serena whispered mournfully. "He was scared she would leave him forever if he asked."

"Well that's silly," Rini pointed out as she allowed her eyes to close. "Why would the maiden ever say no to the prince. She loves him."

"That's what the maiden told the prince," Serena informed her daughter. "It took a little convincing, but the prince finally believed that the maiden would love him forever and so they got married."

"Did the maiden know the prince would love her forever?" Rini asked, her words almost too jumbled for the blond to make out.

"Of course she did. She didn't doubt their love for a second. She knew from very early on that they would get married and start a family with that love, she just had to wait until he was sure of it," Serena assured as Rini's breathing evened out, signifying that the little girl had finally fallen asleep.

"Night baby girl, sweet dreams," Serena sighed as she leaned forward and kissed the four year old on the forehead before tiredly pushing herself to her feet.

"You did not always know," a dark haired man who was leaning against the wall across the hall protested once Serena had slipped out of Rini's room and shut the door behind her.

"Did so," the blond replied confidently as she walked over to her husband and pushed herself onto her tippy-toes so she could wrap her arms around his neck.

"You're going to hurt yourself," Darien warned as he set his hands on either side of his wife's protruding belly, gently cradling the child Serena carried.

"Mmm, it's worth it," Serena mumbled as she lightly pressed her lips against Darien's, causing him to groan and slip his hands around her waist in order to support her better.

"Not worth it," he protested as he pulled away from his petite wife and pushed her down until her bare feet were flat on the floor. "C'mon, love, let's get to bed, okay? It's late."

"I know it's late," the blond yawned, just as Rini had minutes earlier, "but I don't wanna go to bed. Since when have I had the same bedtime as our four year old daughter?"

"Since I got you pregnant again, eight months ago," Darien reminded as he set his hands on Serena's shoulders, turned her pregnancy-laden body down the hallway and walked her to the room they had shared for the past 6 years.

"That's right, this is all your fault," Serena pouted as Darien sat her down on their bed and went to change into pajamas. "I should have never let you touch me," she continued as she slipped off the zip-up sweater she had worn over her pajama top that evening and flopped back on their bed.

"I love you too, Serena," Darien replied as he joined her on the bed, sliding across the empty space until his body was pressed up against hers.

"Good," Serena sighed softly as she turned over so that she could press her face into Darien's chest, his torso curling around her stomach, protectively shielding their baby from any and all unseen danger. "Y'know, you're pathetic too, going to bed at the same time as me and Rini."

"I see nothing wrong with going to bed at the same time as my wife. Besides, I'm trying to store up some hours. I can imagine things with our second child won't be much different then they were with the first," Darien reminded.

"Oh don't remind me," Serena groaned as she closed her eyes tiredly and pressed her nose up against Darien's chest, taking a deep breath of her husband's intoxicating scent for comfort. "It's not fair. I'm so achy and tired as it is. I don't get a break."

"But you get me," Darien replied, attempting to offer a consolation prize.

Serena snorted at this. "Great. Perfect. If that's any indication, Luna will be getting just as much sleep as we do. Again."

"I wasn't that bad," Darien cried in indignation causing Serena to look up at him, mischief twinkling in her eyes.

"No, you were worse. I swear, even Diana was more help with Rini," the blond commented.

"I'll be better this time, I promise," he swore with a solemn look on his face.

"I'm holding you to that," she replied as she lifted her head and set a light kiss on Darien's lips. He responded by pulling her closer and resting his chin on the top of her head, more than ready to turn in for the night.

"Hey, do you ever wonder what happened to Sapphire at the end of all this?" Serena asked sleepily. Darien smiled at his wife's innocence and good intention.

"Sometimes, Serena, but not enough to actually find out. I can look into it tomorrow, if you'd like," he offered without having to be asked.

Serena smiled sleepily into Darien's shirt, knowing he couldn't see it. He was too good to her, even she knew that, and she was thankful everyday.

"No, it's okay. I was just wondering," she yawned. "Goodnight Darien, I love you."

"I love you too," he whispered back as they both finally drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Sapphire propped himself up against his headboard with only the streetlights from the not-so-busy, 4 am New York City sidewalk slipping through the shades of his window to illuminate his room. He had one arm curled around the bare shoulders of the woman sleeping on his right while his free hand stroked the thick curls of the woman lying on his left. He smiled slightly as he thought back on the last six years his brother had been in prison.

No, the youngest Prince son wasn't a necessarily a good man, nor was he much of a model citizen, but he kept his destructive tendencies to himself. He didn't involve anyone else. All he did was live his decadent lifestyle to the fullest and run his company. But he wasn't stupid. No, years of watching his brother's debauchery kept him wise. Everyday he remembered Diamond's folly, the stupidity that landed him in prison, which later led him to be declared clinically insane. He remembered how, at the end of his sentence, the older Prince would be going to live in a white padded room in a jacket not meant for the mentally sound.

"Well at least he didn't drag me down with him," Sapphire mumbled happily as he glanced down at the women lying on either side of him. He had money, women, a future, a life and his freedom. What more could he want?

"And they all lived happily ever after," he sighed as he shifted himself further down under the blankets and drifted off to sleep.**

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A/N: END.**

**-Sniff-**

**Well. That's all for this one, my dears. I hope you like how I ended it. I love Sapphire even though he's a major ass.**

**So, for the final time, thank you, thank you, thank you to all my readers and reviewers. You guys are the best. I owe you all for sticking with me through this wild ride and I'm more than sure karma will bring the fuzzies around to all of you for your good deed of reading my writing and maybe even leaving some kind words of encouragement.**

**Please let me know if you spot any technical errors with any of the story via review or PM and continue to check my profile for updates! I hope to have the new Sailor Moon story up and running in a few weeks.**

**Love and Luck,**

**Gaby**


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